autism/vaccine expert on Coast to Coast A.M.

[exDemMom]

My daughters almost died of RSV when they were 6 weeks old. There is no vaccine for it, but there is a treatment protocol for at risk babies.

My cousin was very concerned about RSV when her babies were born 3 months premature. The pediatrician told her that such an infection could be fatal.

There are vaccines in development, but vaccine development is an exceedingly challenging endeavor, and there is no telling when a vaccine might actually make it through FDA approval.

I was very thankful for the whooping cough vaccine because I was told my daughters would die if they caught it.

Whooping cough is very dangerous, especially for young babies. I've seen youtube videos of children suffering from whooping cough--it is very painful to watch.

The CDC recommends that pregnant women get a pertussis booster in the 2nd or 3rd trimester of pregnancy. This causes the mother to produce antibodies that cross the placenta to protect the baby for a few weeks after birth. In addition, people who expect to be around a newborn baby should also get the pertussis vaccine to protect the baby. It is possible for an adult or teen to have nearly asymptomatic pertussis, which is a terrible danger for any babies they contact.

I also have a older friend in a wheelchair from polio.

My late mother-in-law wore a leg brace because she had had polio as a child. A long time ago, I also knew a woman who was wheelchair bound because of polio.

I have another friend whose baby daughter died after DPT vaccine.

That is sad, but highly unlikely to be a result of the vaccine. Children, sadly, die every day. Sometimes a cause cannot be found.

I like the idea of spreading out vaccines. I also think that you need to look at the benefit vs risks of vaccines.

Medically, there is no reason to use anything other than the vaccine schedule that the CDC publishes. While it is true that some vaccines will interfere with other vaccines (as in making the other vaccines not work), these issues are discussed in great depth by the committees who meet to discuss the vaccine schedules and recommendations. The committees consist of health care experts across a range of specialties. They also look carefully at the risk/benefit ratio. For instance, they do not routinely recommend Japanese encephalitis (JE) vaccine because JE is not endemic in the USA, but if you are going to Asia, you might be recommended to take it because the risk/benefit ratio shifts dramatically if you make that travel. I recently traveled to Asia for 6 weeks, and got several vaccinations that I would not normally receive.

We held off giving my daughters guardisil because they weren’t sexually active and they had neurological problems.

I think the major objection to Gardasil and Cervarix is that people mistakenly think that they cause promiscuity. I'm not sure exactly how they think this would happen, because morality is something you teach your children and is not affected by vaccines.

That said, the reason that the HPV vaccines are recommended for prepubescent children is that these viruses are so prevalent that once they are older and become sexually active, the vaccines might be useless because they are already exposed.

I thought about not giving my kids chicken pox vaccine, but it can be bad for people on steroids. My daughters were routinely on steroids for asthma.

A major problem with steroids is that they interfere with the immune system and reduce the efficacy of vaccines. I remember studying that way back when I was a new graduate student; the mechanistic details are somewhat fuzzy now, after 20 years.

Chickenpox is a very serious disease in a small number of children. It certainly is not as serious as measles. However, once you get chickenpox, the virus stays in your body forever. It then comes back as shingles, which is a painful rash that can cause tenacious and even permanent neuropathies. Shingles in the facial area can cause blindness or deafness. I got shingles on my neck, and felt sharp stabbing pains for years afterwards.

There is strong reason to think that preventing chickenpox through a vaccine will prevent shingles. Researchers are still gathering data. I think that the data will eventually confirm the hypothesis.

FYI, I do happen to be a medical researcher, and I have quite a bit of experience with vaccine matters.

[luckystarmom]

Great replies except the one baby girl did die after DPT. She git a high fever the night after the vaccine and asperated in her sleep. They’ve also changed that vaccine to make it safer, DPaT. It’s very rare that it happens.

[Boowhoknew]

I’ve met people who have gone to the autism courts as expert witnesses. This doctor who had seen my son had a family with deep pockets that paid a atty. with experience on the matter. The Judge presiding made her own leaning guide her handling of witnesses and treated this doctor and the attorney as if they were idiots. The doctor operates a clinic in lower Louisianna that deals primarily with autism, and other mental issues of children and young adults, and besides having gone through more higher education than the judge, the doctor’s years of experience bore no credence for the Judge, who eventually ruled in favor to a lesser degree. But the vaccine courts are not the help for affected families they should be. I don’t have money for a lawyer who already is aware of the circle the wagons attitude of the courts judges and defense lawyers have.
Think back, Obozo said he was going to get to the bottom of it, once...was he repelled by the truth or was it speaking points to get a segment to vote for him.
Has the incidence of autism decreased?
are the immunization laws and common health vettings being done on the Somalis, syrians,and other magic immigrants?
Are you a lawyer and do you want a part of this?
I posted the notice so anyone who wanted to listen could. If I wanted a load of crap like some who have posted, I’d have called my ex wife,kicked her cage and listened to the sweet litany of bull manure that exudes freely from her lips. She’s not the mother of my autistic child,thank God. His mom and I are working as hard as we can for my son. We know all to well there is no help other than God’s. The incident that happened in Chitown is not uncommon. Family members his age avoid him, acting as if he isn’t there or worse being sly with remarks.He is a decent kid smart in ways that we forget sometimes.a stuborn, tender hearted, interested, teenager.We are lucky that he’s a lot more self suffient than some.

[Luircin]

Did you not read what I had to say?

I am autistic. I KNOW what it’s like. You know what it’s like to be a parent of an autistic child you say; I’d like you to acknowledge my own experiences!

I’m just a little pissed off that people are saying that a horrible gruesome death by smallpox or hepatitis or even influenza is worse than a risk of autism, even IF what you have to say is accurate.

A little acknowledgement that a life with autism still happens to be worth something would be nice, because most of the rhetoric I get assumes that I’m better off dead.

And on top of that, there is, of course, the risk of significant brain damage that is similar or identical via the diseases you might get from NOT vaccinating, as ALSO happened in my family.

These are the points I’m making; other than repeating these points I am going to keep my peace about anything else.