Vaccination NewsLetter: Top Stories - April 28-May 4, 2003

Previous newsletters

Smallpox/smallpox vaccine

E-News: M.D. Says Stop Smallpox Shots (NVIC)

Smallpox Vaccination - Implementation of National Program Faces Challenges - GAO Highlights

Bush signs smallpox vaccine compensation law

H.R.1770 - An Act - To provide benefits and other compensation for certain individuals with injuries resulting from administration of smallpox countermeasures, and for other purposes.

National campaign against smallpox falters - As fears over bioterrorism fade and SARS spreads, health officials are rethinking the goals of vaccination.

Despite Warnings, Pregnant Women Got Smallpox Vaccine

Frist bills/Eli Lilly et al protection/VICP  -  for more, click here

Other Bioterror-related

"Biodefense Plan Greeted With Caution"

(More Homeland Security related articles posted starting on May 19, 2003)  http://www.vaccinationnews.com/HomelandSecurity.htm

Autism

Breaking down myths about autism - This article ignores the fact  that many children develop normally prior to developing autism, i.e.,   "regressive" autism.

Scientists wonder if Einstein, Newton were autistic

When Silence Speaks - The Way My Mother Taught Me  - looks very interesting (I have not read it through).

Therapy, diet help parents deal with baffling condition

Autism/mercury

Rep. Burton And Leading Scientists To Announce Findings Of New Mercury-Autism Correlation Studies - “A Causal Relationship Appears To Be Confirmed.”

Autism/MMR

Autism and vaccines

AIDS/AIDS vaccine

Alzheimer's disease/vaccine

New drug may slow Alzheimer's course - Anticipation of a dramatic increase in the numbers of Americans with Alzheimer's disease continues to propel research on treatment and prevention.

Anthrax/anthrax vaccine/Gulf War Syndrome

Fort Drum Soldier On Trial for Refusing Vaccine

Further wave of Gulf War illness feared

Cancer/cancer vaccines

Chickenpox/chickenpox vaccine

Diphtheria/diphtheria vaccine

"Flare of Diphtheria Closes School for Quarantine in Nizhny Tagil"

Flu/flu vaccine

Haemophilus Influenza Vaccine

Hepatitis A/hepatitis A vaccine

Hepatitis B/hepatitis B vaccine

Hepatitis  C

Theory Links Hepatitis C to Polio Syringes in Italy

Meningitis/meningitis vaccine

Some Are Genetically Prone to Meningitis - Aberrations leave people susceptible to sepsis

MMR/measles,mumps,rubella

Doctors' children avoid MMR

Pet vaccines

Pneumonia/prevnar

Vaccine for Elderly Won't Prevent Pneumonia - click here for my column on this topic.

Vaccine insufficient for elderly, study says - ditto (same column, same topic)

Polio/polio vaccine

World Bank OKs Polio Eradication Campaign - World Bank Approves Innovative $28 Million Program to Help Eradicate Polio

RECALLS

SARS

"Vaccine or a Cure for Disease Likely to Take Years to Find"

U.S. Pushes For Drugs to Fight SARS - Vaccine Could Be Ready in 1 to 3 Years, Scientists Say  - interesting overview

SARS Vaccine Likely in Months: Chinese Experts - hmmm.   Who's right?  Perhaps even more important, however, given the controversy over what SARS really is, how can a vaccine be developed at all?

SARS vaccine: maybe, maybe not, but expensive -  This article tries to put it all together.

SARS Less Serious in Kids

Don't panic: flu, malaria and falling down stairs are bigger killers

"Doctors Question Safety of Proposal to Study Virus"

Hong Kong Experts Say SARS Virus Mutating Rapidly, May Complicate Efforts To Develop Vaccine

SARS news spurs demand for medical masks - The N95 has been used to protect against biological agents and construction debris. But its newfound cachet is fueling concern about maintaining an adequate supply.

West Nile virus/vaccine

Whooping cough/DPT vaccine

Other vaccines/screening

Vaccines in general

(Vaccine) additives & contaminants

Vaccine testing

Adverse reactions/VAERS/VICP

Multiple Travel Vaccinations Seem Safe: Study  - This looks to be a good example of how to lie with statistics.  First,  43% of those vaccinated with one vaccine had a reaction, which doesn't mean that even one vaccine is "safe".   Second, they combined the rest (multiple vaccines) to come up with 59% having reactions.  Perhaps that is not a "statistically significant" difference, but perhaps it is.   Third, when you separate out the number of vaccines, the difference becomes more  profound, with about 70% reporting an adverse reaction among those receiving 3 or more vaccines.  This probably IS significant.  Thus the conclusion I would reach from the information provided in this report is the following:  Even one vaccine causes considerable numbers of adverse reactions, and the more vaccines, the more reactions.....  i.e., not even one could be called "safe", but the more vaccines are given, the more unsafe they appear to be.

Alternative Treatments/prevention

Homeopathy: The Test - transcript - fascinating

Bad diet = bad behaviour

Therapy, diet help parents deal with baffling condition

Breastfeeding (vs. formula)

Adding Fatty Acids To Formula Milk May Cut Heart Disease In Later Life

Prevalence of Breastfeeding in the United States: The 2001 National Immunization Survey

"The Condition Our Condition Is In" (The State of Medicine)

Serious Bacterial Infections in Febrile Infants Younger Than 90 Days of Age: The Importance of Ampicillin-Resistant Pathogens

Conflict of Interest

U.S. Warns Drug Makers On Illegal Sales Practices

Doctors aim to end conflicts of interest - Cancer specialists issue new guidelines

Death and Disease

Pesticides are linked to breast cancer

Effectiveness/herd immunity

Ethics

Funding

Government/science/industry/medicine clearly run amok

Study: Kids With Disabilities at Risk

Legal/legislation

*Pending Immunization Legislation - bookmark this link

Parental/health rights/exemptions/mandatory/privacy/health freedom

E-News: Public Health vs Civil Liberties (NVIC) - "Lock 'Em Up"

Pharmaceutical industry/pharmaceutical industry oversight

Dying For Drugs - I haven't read this yet, but am looking forward to it.

Talking Up A Drug For This (And That)

U.S. Warns Drug Makers On Illegal Sales Practices

FDA Says It Can Take Away Drugs' Prescription Status

Politics

Research/publishing/other research results

Letters From Parents &others

Miscellaneous

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