Link between vaccine, autism is disputed
In the nation's last major measles outbreak, which struck in 1989-91, the virus was spread largely by unvaccinated, low-income children who lacked healthcare access.
Now, scientists are worried about outbreaks being fueled by clusters of people who are not vaccinated as a matter of choice, rather than access.
Many scientists pin the start of the controversy on a since-discredited 1998 report published in the British medical journal Lancet that linked the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine with autism.
Led by Dr. Andrew Wakefield, a senior scientific investigator based in London, the study looked at 12 children who had a history of normal development followed by autism-like symptoms, including loss of language skills, as well as diarrhea and abdominal pain, after the MMR vaccination.
In eight of the children, the study said, "The onset of behavioral problems had been linked, either by the parents or by the child's physician, with measles, mumps and rubella vaccination."
The study later said, "Further investigations are needed to examine this syndrome and its possible relation to the vaccine."
The study's release provoked an uproar in English newspapers.
"Measles vaccinations may be triggering the onset of autism," the Evening Standard wrote.
"Alert over child jabs," was a headline in the Guardian.
Ten of the 12 original co-authors of the original Lancet study signed a retraction of the report's conclusions in 2004.
"We wish to make it clear that in this paper, no causal link was established between MMR vaccine and autism as the data were insufficient," the retraction said.
Indeed, a separate study published in Lancet in 1999 looked at autism cases in Britain before and after the MMR shot was introduced in that country in 1988: There was "no sudden 'step-up' . . . after the introduction of MMR vaccination," the report said.
Wakefield, who has defended his original conclusion, has since been accused of accepting money from representatives of people who believe they were harmed by the MMR vaccine, and has been undergoing a disciplinary hearing by the General Medical Council, which licenses medical doctors in Britain.
In hearings covered widely in the British media in March and April, Wakefield has denied any wrongdoing.
Despite mainstream scientific evidence showing no connection between the vaccine and autism, a vocal group of parents with autistic children remain committed to the premise.Rick Rollens, the parent of an autistic child in Granite Bay, Calif., said his son, now 17, was 7 months old when he received a series of vaccinations, and his behavior changed dramatically.
"He was never the same after that," said Rollens, whose son was diagnosed with autism at the age of 17 months.
Rollens dismisses epidemiological studies that public officials cite in making their case for vaccinations.
"They're done by people who have a vested interest in protecting the status quo," Rollens said. "Vaccine and immunization policy is a sacred cow of the public health community and Big Pharma," he said, referring to large pharmaceutical companies.
ron.lin@latimes.com
