my comment: nejm: The Age-Old Struggle against the Antivaccinationists

[Guest guest]

The prejudicial mind set of Poland and son, the article's

co-authors, is set forth in their own rhetoric:

" Today, the spectrum of antivaccinationists ranges from people

who are simply ignorant about science (or " innumerate " --- unable to

understand and incorporate concepts of risk and probability into

science-grounded decision making) to a radical fringe element who use

deliberate mistruths, intimidation, falsified data, and threats of

violence in efforts to prevent the use of vaccines and to silence

critics. Antivaccinationists tend toward complete mistrust of government

and manufacturers, conspiratorial thinking, denialism, low cognitive

complexity in thinking patterns, reasoning flaws, and a habit of

substituting emotional anecdotes for data. " (1).

Poland and son overstate what Wakefield et al wrote regarding the

possibility that the MMR /may/ have been etiologically significant in a

subgroup of children with regressive autism and a specific type of ileal

inflammation:

" The 1998 publication of an article, recently retracted by the

Lancet, by Wakefield et al... created a worldwide controversy over the

measles--mumps--rubella (MMR) vaccine by claiming that it played a

causative role in autism. " (1)

Poland and son fail to mention the confirmations of Wakefield et

al's actual findings (2, see also 3). Furthermore, the " spectrum of

antivaccinationists " seems to include numerous PhDs and MDs (2-3).

Indeed, framing the debate in regard to a " spectrum of

antivaccinationists " also ignores comments by Bernadine Healy, M.D.,

from NIH director, who has observed that major studies of vaccinated

versus unvaccinated have yet to be enacted. Furthermore, Poland and

son fail to mention the 1999 CDC findings of Verstraeten et al and

the deliberate diluting of their own data so as to diminish adverse

associations with thimerosal injections. Regarding thimerosal's adverse

effects, a summary of the Verstraeten et al debacle is available (4)

and, perhaps not surprisingly, peer-reviewed concerns about vaccine

adjuvants are being published, eg, " New adjuvanted vaccines in

pregnancy: what is known about their safety? " (5).

Ironically, Andy W has never been anti-vaccination. His work towards a

monovalent MV vaccine was similar in many ways to efforts of people in

vaccine-related businesses (whether in or out of academia), ie, people

such as Offit, Greg Poland, and son.

Personally, I have come to know many parents who witnessed their child's

regression into autism, who firmly believe a vaccination incident was a

precipitating event, yet who remain pro-vaccination. To be for safer

vaccinations and a safer schedule of vaccinations is not to be an

antivaccinationist. The way Poland and son misconstrue issues is

not helpful.

*//*

1. */The Age-Old Struggle against the Antivaccinationists/*

A. Poland, M.D., and M. son, M.D.

N Engl J Med 2011; 364:97-99

January 13, 2011

text available at: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1010594

2. /*Peer Reviewed Papers Support Wakefield Findings*/

http://www.ageofautism.com/2010/05/peer-reviewed-papers-support-findings.html

3. */Scientists fear MMR link to autism/*

By SALLY BECK, Mail on Sunday

Dec 2006

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-388051/Scientists-fear-MMR-link-autism.h\

tml

excerpt with highlight added: " Now a team from the Wake Forest

University School of Medicine in North Carolina are examining 275

children with regressive autism and bowel disease - and of the 82 tested

so far, 70 prove positive for the measles virus. Last night the team's

leader, Dr , said: 'Of the handful of results we have in

so far, */all are vaccine strain and none are wild measles/*. "

4. /*Vaccinations: Deadly Immunity*/

F. Kennedy Jr.

Global Research

July 25, 2009

http://www.infowars.com/vaccinations-deadly-immunity/

5. New adjuvanted vaccines in pregnancy: what is known about their

safety? <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21105777>

Herberts C, Melgert B, van der Laan JW, Faas M.

Expert Rev Vaccines. 2010 Dec;9(12):1411-22.

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/734891

*/abstract/*: The recent introduction of oil-in-water emulsions as

adjuvants in several pandemic vaccines, such as the H1N1 vaccine, has

challenged regulatory authorities to establish their safety in the

general population, as well as in specific populations. Pregnant women

were advised to be a target group for H1N1 vaccination owing to the risk

of this group developing serious complications with this infection.

However, the addition of adjuvants to the H1N1 vaccine has initiated a

discussion on the safety of adjuvanted vaccines in this special

population. Changes in the maternal immune system are essential for

acceptance of the fetus and for development of the placenta. The

potential effects on pregnancy of interfering with this uniquely adapted

immune balance through the induction of proinflammatory reactions such

as those induced by adjuvanted vaccines have only been studied rarely.

Here, we review the available information and discuss how vaccination

may interfere with pregnancy, fetal development and pregnancy outcomes.