Posted on 03/03/2006 1:54:55 AM PST by neverdem
Autism diagnoses have dropped nationwide since mercury was removed from most childhood vaccines, according to a new study that some say lends credence to charges that vaccinations were responsible for a huge increase in autism cases.
About 4,700 families -- including ones from Framingham and Waltham -- have pending claims in a federal vaccine court alleging that mercury in vaccines caused their children to develop autism.
The allegations are controversial and viewed with skepticism by many government officials and medical professionals. But supporters of a vaccine-autism link say a new report in the peer reviewed Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons proves that the removal of mercury from vaccines has led to a decrease in autism cases.
"This study is exactly the kind of thing people have been waiting for for three years now," said Richard Deth, a neuropharmacologist at Northeastern University who has testified in front of Congress on this issue. "It was recognized that this type of data would be (necessary) to see whether this theory had validity or not."
The study by two researchers was criticized by a government vaccination official who said it drew conclusions from unreliable data.
"I don’t think this study can really be taken to provide any evidence one way or another," said Dr. Robert Davis, director of the immunization safety group at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
But the study was warmly received by Jared Hansen, a Framingham resident with two autistic children who filed a claim in the federal vaccine court.
"It’s certainly the data we’ve been expecting and waiting for. I’m glad to see it’s been published," Hansen said. "I believe it will swing some people who are sitting on the fence."
Hansen’s claim is pending in front of the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, a no-fault system that pays financial settlements from a trust fund consisting of vaccine surcharges. The program is considering claims in one omnibus proceeding from Hansen and 4,700 other parents, including Mike Chmura of Waltham.
Between 1988 and 1992, the federal government more than doubled the amount of mercury injected into babies by recommending additional vaccines that contain thimerosal, a preservative containing mercury.
Since then, estimated autism prevalence soared from one out of 2,500 births to one in every 166. Federal officials say the increase is at least partly explained by changes in diagnostic guidelines, but some researchers believe mercury in vaccines is to blame.
Thimerosal is still used in flu shots, but was eliminated from most other childhood vaccines by 2003.
A father-son research team determined that new diagnoses of autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders have dropped since then after analyzing data from the national Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, the U.S. Department of Education and the California Department of Developmental Services.
Additional doses of mercury-containing vaccines were associated with a 2- to 8-fold increase in risk for neurodevelopmental disorders, they wrote in the latest issue of the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons.
"Significant decreasing trends in newly diagnosed (disorders) were observed ... from mid-2002 through 2005," wrote Dr. Mark Geier and son, David. Mark Geier is president of the Genetic Centers of America and his son is a graduate student in biochemistry at George Washington University.
Their study was criticized by officials who said the data bases the Geiers analyzed are not reliable. The Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System can contain reports filed by anyone, including doctors, patients and lawyers, Davis said.
The Department of Education numbers are skewed, another official said, because the DOE did not make autism a separate diagnosis until the 1990s. That led to an artificial increase because children who previously had different diagnoses were then considered autistic, said Dr. Marie McCormick, a Harvard professor who chaired an Institute of Medicine committee that dismissed any link between vaccines and autism.
(Jon Brodkin can be reached at 508-626-4424 or jbrodkin@cnc.com.)
Autism Rates Decline as Mercury Removed from Childhood Vaccines
Journal of American Physicians & Surgeons ^ | March 2, 2006
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