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THE AUTISM FILE| www.autismle.com REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF THE AUTISM FILE ISSUE 31 2009
the IOM concluded that the “evidenceis consistent with a causal relation”between rubella vaccine and acute andchronic arthritis, an autoimmune disorderinvolving infammation o the joints.)In 1994, another IOM Committee wenturther ater re-analyzing the landmark1981 prospective, case-controlled British
National Childhood Encephalopathy Study
(NCES)
21
and concluded in areport entitled
DPT Vaccine and ChronicNeurological Dysunction
that:
The NCES data are consistent withthe possibility that some childrenwithout underlying brain or metabolicabnormalities might experience seriousacute neurologic illness within 7 daysater receiving DPT and that acuteillness could have chronic nervous system sequelae. The NCES data arealso consistent with the possibility that some children with underlying brain or metabolic abnormalities (which oster a “triggering” by DPT o an acuteneurologic illness) might go on to developchronic nervous system dysunctiondue to a DPT-triggered acute illness.Thereore, the Committee concludes that the balance o evidence is consistent with a causal relation between DPT andthe orms o chronic nervous systemdysunction described in the NCES inthose children who experience a seriousacute neurologic illness within 7 daysater receiving DPT vaccine….theestimated excess risk ranged rom 0 to10.5 per million immunizations.
22
Although the word “autism” didnot appear in the NCES, the types oDPT-induced chronic neurologicaldysunction that were listed in that studyo neurological dysunction in childrenwere described as “neurologic, motor,sensory, educational, behavioral and sel-care dysunctions” such as severe ebrileand non-ebrile convulsions, tremor,gross and ne motor incoordination,muscle weakness, abnormal tendonrefexes, hyperactive behavior, unsociablebehavior, vision and hearing losses. Itis worth noting that the original 1981NCES ound that “the risk o a seriousneurological disorder within 14 days atermeasles vaccine in previously normalchildren irrespective o eventual clinicaloutcome is 1 in 87,000 immunizations”while the NCES authors ound that “theattributable risk o a serious neurologicaldisorder within seven days ater DTPvaccine in previously normal childrenirrespective o eventual clinical outcomeis 1 in 110,000 immunizations.”A 1994 IOM Committee examining themedical literature concluded in the report
Adverse Events Associated with ChildhoodVaccines
that “the evidence establishes acausal relation between measles vaccineand death rom measles vaccine-strainviral inection.”
23
In 1998, CDC ocialspublished a study o cases o braininfammation within 15 days o MMR ormeasles vaccination that ended in deathor permanent brain injury, including“mental regression and retardation,chronic seizures, motor and sensorydecits, and movement disorders.” Theauthors noted a clustering o caseswith signs and symptoms o braininfammation (such as seizures) occurringon days 8 and 9 ater MMR or measlesvaccination and concluded that “a causalrelationship between measles vaccine andencephalopathy may exist.”
24
In 1999, astudy was published in
Clinical InectiousDiseases
in which the authors state, “webelieve that the present report is therst to clearly demonstrate that severeneurological disease can be caused by thevaccine strain o measles virus.”
25
Multiple Vaccines, GeneticVulnerability and Brain andImmune Dysunction
The possibility that genetically vulnerablechildren may develop neurologicaldysunction ater repeated atypicalmanipulations o the immune systemwith multiple vaccines in early childhoodis an hypothesis I rst presented to theInstitute o Medicine ImmunizationSaety Review Committee in January2001. I stated:
There is a compelling argument tobe made that the dramatic increase inchronic brain and immune dysunction inchildren, especially the rising number o reports o regression in previously healthy children, is due to an early exposurethat is being experienced by all childrenbut which is harming an expandingminority o them…. Many biologicalresponses are at least partially under genetic control. I, or example, adverseresponses to vaccination are tied to the genes responsible or predisposition toautoimmunity and immune-mediatedneurological dysunction, then it is possible that the addition o more doseso vaccines to the routine schedule inthe past two decades has aected moreand more children with that genetic predisposition…
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Thereore, when all children wereexposed only to DPT and polio vaccinein the early 1960s, a tiny raction othe genetically susceptible respondedadversely. But with the addition omeasles, mumps, and rubella to theroutine schedule in 1979, and thenHIB, hepatitis B, and chicken pox in thelate 1980s and 1990s, ar more o thegenetically susceptible have been broughtinto the adverse-responder group.This hypothesis could not be examinedby the IOM in their 2002 report on
Multiple Immunizations and ImmuneDysunction.
Ater reviewing evidencein the medical literature, the IOMImmunization Saety Review Committeestated that:
The committee was unable to addressthe concern that repeated exposure o a[genetically] susceptible child to multipleimmunizations over the developmental period may also produce atypical or non-specifc immune or nervous systeminjury that could lead to severe disability or death (Fisher, 2001). There are noepidemiological studies to addressthis. Thus, the committee recognizes
A healthy, mature immune system requires an equalbalance of cellular and humoral immune system responses.A disruption in this balance can lead to developmentof allergy and autoimmune disorders, includingneuroimmune disorders.
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