Vaccination NewsLetter: Top Stories - June 2-8, 2003

FREEDOM OF CHOICE IS NOT FREE

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Note 1: If for any reason you end up in the "frames" version of the website, here's how to create a unique "url".  In Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Netscape 7, in order to bookmark, forward or copy the direct link, right click on the link you are interested in and click on "open in new window".  The page will now open with the correct url.  (If someone knows how to do this in other editions of Netscape, please email me at sandym@touchngo.com and I will publish those directions as well.)

Note 2:  A sentence or two from each article will be included right after the link in quotes in many cases.

Note 3:  A short bio of Sandy Mintz is included in the Scandals column titled: The Homeland Security Act - The Aftermath.

Note 4:  My comments are in red.

Previous newsletters

Picks of the week

Smallpox/smallpox vaccine

20 Cases of Disease Related to Smallpox Found in the U.S.

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

Other Bioterror-related

(More Homeland Security related articles posted starting on June 27, 2003)  http://www.vaccinationnews.com/HomelandSecurity.htm

Autism

Recovering from autism - Going beyond the stereotype to therapies that work

Autism/mercury

Study fails to show connection between thimerosal and autism

FDA & CDC Bumbling at the Expense of Mercury-Poisoned Children

Low level methylmercury exposure affects neuropsychological function in adults

Autism/MMR

Is there any research going on to find out if the MMR vaccine is linked to autism? - "The NICHD is also working with other NIH Institutes, the CDC, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and other federal agencies to conduct a large, long-term study of the effects of the environment on children’s health. This study will follow 100,000 children from before birth to age 20, to track their growth and development, as well as their genetic blueprints and environmental factors that they encounter. Researchers hope to establish or rule out links between a variety of environmental events and normal and abnormal development, such as autism, asthma, and other childhood disorders that have shown dramatic increase. The study is currently under design." - Don't expect NIH to include a meaningful control group, however. - SM

Autism and vaccines

AIDS/AIDS vaccine

Kids' risk of HIV after accidental exposure is low - "Doctors should not automatically give HIV drugs to every child who may have been accidentally exposed to the virus that causes AIDS, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics...Although quickly starting treatment with HIV drugs -- an approach called post-exposure prophylaxis -- may reduce the risk that the virus takes hold after a suspected exposure, doctors need to first consider whether the risk of infection is greater than the risks associated with taking the drugs, they said."

Unsafe healthcare "drives spread of African HIV"

Alzheimer's disease/vaccine

Anthrax/anthrax vaccine/Gulf War Syndrome

“Direct Order”: An Award-Winning Documentary Tells the Story of Members of the Military who were Ordered Against their Will to Take the Controversial Anthrax Vaccine

Health Checks for U.S. Troops Coming Back from Iraq 

Ministry of Defence accused of contravening inoculation guidelines

Autoimmunity/autoimmune disease

Vaccination and autoimmune disease: what is the evidence? - I have not read this.- SM

Cancer/cancer vaccines

“Breakthrough in Tailor-Made Medicines”

Chickenpox/chickenpox vaccine

Diphtheria/diphtheria vaccine

Flu/flu vaccine

'Smart' flu vaccines loom

Haemophilus Influenza/Hib Vaccine

Booster jabs target Hib infection - An immunisation campaign is being launched in Scotland following a rise in the number of children contracting a potentially fatal disease. - "Uptake is high - over 96% - but over the last few years there has been a small but significant increase in the number of cases of Hib disease," said the chief medical officer...It is important that we take action to arrest this increase in new infections before it becomes a more serious concern, and that is why this one-off booster is being offered...The aim is to ensure that all children who are between six months of age and their fourth birthday receive a Hib booster vaccination by late summer." - This seems to mean that even those who had received the vaccine a few months prior are being asked to get a booster.  What does that say about the effectiveness of this vaccine? - SM

Hepatitis A/hepatitis A vaccine

Hepatitis B/hepatitis B vaccine

Hepatitis C

Lyme disease/lyme disease vaccine

Meningitis/meningitis vaccine

Bill would require college freshmen to get meningitis shots

MMR/measles,mumps,rubella

Measles Program in the Americas - "In announcing a global commitment to reduce deaths from measles, World Health Organization officials here cited the Americas as an example for the world because of its success in eliminating the deadly childhood disease. There have been no cases of measles reported in the Americas since November of last year, but there are thousands of cases in some European countries and an estimated 745,000 children die from measles worldwide every year, said Dr. Daniel Tarantola, who directs WHO's vaccines and biological programs." - For more on the use of  misleading measles statistics, click here.

MMR: more scrutiny, please - "A study of what and how people learn about science from the media discovered that 48% of the public felt that when scientists go against the grain, as Wakefield did in suggesting a link between MMR and autism, the media should wait until other studies confirm those findings before covering them."

Pet vaccines

Pneumonia/prevnar

Polio/polio vaccine

Polio is gone but not quite forgotten - Survivors are still stuggling with once-dreaded disease.

Northern Nigeria: How distrust marred polio vaccine project

Girl dies after forced polio dose - "Das accused the health worker of giving his daughter the polio drops despite knowing she was above five years of age."

Rabies/rabies vaccine

Tobacco Plant Source of Rabies Treatment

RECALLS

SARS

SARS vaccine work put on fast track; 3 years, scientist says - "No one knows how bad SARS will become, whether it will burn out or continue to spread, even exactly how it makes people so sick. But the consensus among the country's top health officials is that it would be foolish to wait and see." - If we don't even know how "it makes people sick", how can we realistically create a vaccine for it?  Who will really benefit from such an endeavor? - SM

“WHO Declares SARS Is on the Wane”

The Scare Up There - The Proven Transmission of SARS on Aircraft Adds New Urgency to a Long-Standing Question: Are Airliner Cabins Hot Zones for Disease?

Don't sit so close to me

Ontario Warns Against Breaking SARS Quarantines

Scientists Race to Detect SARS, But First They Must Test the Test

SBS (Shaken Baby Syndrome)

It's not always child abuse

West Nile virus/vaccine

Whooping cough/DPT vaccine

Is this their best shot? - Whooping cough outbreak stirs debate over the decision to inoculate

Other vaccines/screening

Vaccines in general/vaccine research

Newborn Vaccination: Babies More Prepared Than Previously Thought

Hope for cheaper, better vaccines - Scientists in Scotland have come up with a new way of making vaccines which they believe would prove especially useful in developing countries.

(Vaccine) additives & contaminants

Vaccine testing

Vaccines expert warns studies are useless - Courageous stand taken by vaccine expert. - SM

Adverse reactions/VAERS/VICP

Avoiding Allergic Reactions to Childhood Vaccines (And What to Do When They Occur)

Alternative Treatments/prevention

The Junk Science "Miracle Antibiotic?" - Colloidal Silver Has Some Distinct Possibilities

Plant estrogens don't cool hot flashes: study

Too much of a good thing? - Think twice before you swallow that handful of vitamins. New research suggests they could actually be harmful to your health.

Treatments: Chill Therapy for Failing Hearts

Antidepressants Curb Hot Flashes - Study finds Paxil and cousins effective and safer than HRT - "The newly reported study used paroxetine, a member of the family of antidepressants called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), and was financed by GlaxoSmithKline, which markets it as Paxil." - Fancy that. - SM

Breastfeeding (vs. formula)

Do Perceived Attitudes of Physicians and Hospital Staff Affect Breastfeeding Decisions?

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

Many autopsies still find doctors' mistakes

Hospitalized Children Experience Medical Errors at the Same Rate as Adults

Unsafe healthcare "drives spread of African HIV"

Conflict of Interest

Drug company funding leads to "biased results" - "They found that, although the research methods were of comparable standards, studies sponsored by drug companies were more likely to have favourable outcome for that company's products and were also less likely to be published...The researchers warn that their findings show that people using only published studies to choose a drug may have their decision influenced by pharmaceutical company bias." - I'm confused.  These two statements seem contradictory.  Anyone? - SM

Death and Disease

Effectiveness/herd immunity

Ethics

Funding

Government/science/industry/medicine clearly run amok

Legal/lawsuits/legislation

Vaccine Court Cases

Lawsuit Alleges Companies Sold Bad Blood

*Pending Immunization Legislation - bookmark this link

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

E-News: Public Debate on Model Health Law (NVIC)

Bill would require college freshmen to get meningitis shots

Pharmaceutical industry/pharmaceutical industry oversight

Biodefense Plan Greeted With Caution - Drug Firms Want Better Guarantees

Drug Makers to Expand Panel On Joint Research on Cancer

Politics

Pregnancy/childbirth

Smoking as Harmful as Drugs to Fetus - Study finds newborns have same withdrawal symptoms with nicotine as with cocaine, heroin

Neonatal Outcome after Trial of Labor Compared with Elective Repeat Cesarean Section

C-section best for breech babies but not for moms

Research/publishing/funding/other research results

Car booster seats cut injuries in kids as old as 7

MRIs Don't Improve Back Pain Care - They're costlier than X-rays, and lead to unnecessary surgery

M.R.I. Could Prove Superior to Mammography

Pediatricians call for more action on phthalates

U.S. court lifts ban on human tests of pesticides

MMR: more scrutiny, please - "A study of what and how people learn about science from the media discovered that 48% of the public felt that when scientists go against the grain, as Wakefield did in suggesting a link between MMR and autism, the media should wait until other studies confirm those findings before covering them."

Kodak devises a promising tool for diagnosing hyperactivity

Study suggests puberty-breast cancer link

Housework can help prevent cancer, say scientists

Latest HRT trial results show risk of dementia

Boys Are More Demanding, Even in the Womb

Study: Maternal care affects adult stress

Letters From Parents &others

Miscellaneous

Newsletter Archives - use this link to access old newsletters, including those whose links may have changed

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