December 21, 2003 - NNMC, NCI Study Possible Vaccine for Ovarian Cancer - www.news.navy.mil

December 20, 2003 - Corporates Declare Full Support For AIDS Vaccine - www.financialexpress.com - "Business cannot thrive in a society that is sick, said NR Narayana Murthy, chairman, Infosys Technologies, after a high level meeting of business leaders to support development of preventive HIV/AIDS vaccines for the country. Senior corporate leaders here on Friday declared wholehearted support for the country’s vision of developing the first AIDS vaccine."

December 21, 2003 - Flu Vaccine recommendations now target larger groups - AP via www.dailypress.com

December 17, 2003 - More parents reject MMR - www.femail.co.uk - "A record number of parents are shunning the MMR vaccine, heightening fears that children will be exposed to a major measles epidemic...In some areas, as many as four in ten children are not having the triple jab which is at the centre of concerns over a possible link to autism and bowel disease... Demand for single jabs is soaring as uptake of MMR has fallen to a new low of just 58 per cent in parts of London, Health Department figures reveal."

December 17, 2003 - Medical check-ups for children to be scrapped - The Scotsman - "Check-ups designed to detect conditions ranging from autism to co-ordination problems in children are to be scrapped under Scottish Executive proposals...The Executive aims to end formal check-ups at eight, 24 and 39 months for the majority of infants, because it believes they are not effective at identifying developmental problems...Instead, most parents will have to rely on the appointments when their children receive immunisation against diphtheria, polio and mumps, measles and rubella, to get health advice. These take place at three, four and 12-15 months and parents will also be offered appointments at 24 months if they have particular concerns they want to raise."
 

December 16, 2003 - Frist Hails Recommendations Of National Vaccine Advisory Committee - www.chattanoogan.com - "U.S. Senator Bill Frist (R-TN) today hailed recommendations to strengthen the nation’s supply of childhood vaccines made by the National Vaccine Advisory Commission (NVAC)."

December 17, 2003 - Strengthening the Supply of Routinely Recommended Vaccines in the United States - Recommendations From the National Vaccine Advisory Committee - journal article (JAMA)

December 16, 2003 - Racial differences in influenza vaccination among older Americans 1996-2000: longitudinal analysis of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) and the Asset and Health Dynamics among the Oldest Old (AHEAD) survey - journal article (BMC Public Health)

December 10, 2003 - VCH Study Finds Deadly Pertussis Making a Comeback; new study begun - Vanderbilt Children's Hospital - "Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital researchers are alarmed by the deaths of four infants at Vanderbilt Children’s over the last year from pertussis, or whooping cough. Dr. Natasha Halasa, Clinical fellow, Pediatric Infectious Diseases and Dr. Kathryn Edwards, Vice chair of Clinical Research and Professor of Pediatrics have published an editorial in November’s The Journal of Pediatrics encouraging a change in the immunization schedule to better protect very young babies from the bacterial infection...Halasa’s study in December’s Pediatrics found even more disturbing information, that even the most advanced treatments for respiratory illness don’t appear to work effectively for infants with pertussis...The answer, Halasa says, is clearly prevention with a new immunization schedule...The main purpose of this study is to determine if it is safe to administer an additional dose of the pertussis vaccine in the first days of life and also to see if babies can mount an adequate immune response. If it is successful, Halasa hopes an eventual change in the immunization schedule might save babies’ lives."

December 20, 2003 - Health officials offer advice on use of nasal flu vaccine - North County Times - "As with the flu shot, the mist's vaccine doesn't exactly match the flu virus that has sickened thousands throughout the state, so doctors don't know how well the mist protects against this year's flu...But the supply of flu shots has dried up in most areas, and health officials say the mist may be a good last resort for healthy people who want at least some protection against the virus..."It's not the best option, but if it comes down to preventing an epidemic, I guess it's probably better than nothing," said Bill Mastin, chief pharmacist for the agency."

Comment:  Not exactly a ringing endorsement. 

December 22, 2003 - Drug giant linked to immunisation campaign - www.theage.com.au - "International drug company Wyeth is helping to fund a lobbying campaign by a supposedly independent health group to get the Federal Government to introduce universal immunisation against pneumococcal disease...Wyeth produces the only pneumococcal vaccine approved for use in young children in Australia."

December 21, 2003 - Vaccine costly but vital, pediatrician says - Asbury Park Press - "Dr. Hector Iglesias of Tinton Falls Pediatrics pays roughly $6,000 every six weeks for shipments of Prevnar, a two-year-old vaccination created to ward off the bacteria that can lead to streptococcus pneumonia, meningitis and ear infections...Iglesias, the Hugheses' current pediatrician, said he stocks the vaccine because of how serious bacterial and ear infections can be in children."

December 19, 2003 - Flu-vaccine prices spikes with demand, deaths - Some pay more than twice the normal cost - The Denver Post - "Flu vaccine is becoming a hot commodity, with the tiny vials selling for up to $300, two-and-a-half times the normal price, in some parts of the country...At the beginning of the season, manufacturers on average charged $85 for a vaccine containing 10 doses...Things aren't quite so bad in Colorado. State health officials recently paid $165 a vial, nearly double the early-season $85...That, they said, was the best deal available after an early and deadly flu season led to a vaccine shortage."

December 19, 2003 - Flu vaccine in short supply, officials say - Doctors brace for what could be the worse outbreak in years - www.townonline.com

December 19, 2003 - Flu-vaccine sellers jab buyers with sharp increases in price - St. Louis Post-Dispatch via The Seattle Times - "Unprecedented demand for the flu vaccine has caused its price to skyrocket from $40 for a 10-dose vial two months ago to as high as $215 today, leading to charges that companies are price-gouging health agencies amid fears of an unusually harsh flu season...'It's pretty clear someone is being taken advantage of here," said Sue Denny with Missouri's state immunization program, "and it's easy to see who.'"

December 20, 2003 - Canada, Taiwan join forces in search for Sars vaccine - AFP via The Straits Times, Asia

December 12, 2003 - Panel urges more fish-mercury safety advice - AP via CNN

December 16, 2003 - New Policy on Mercury Pollution Was Rejected by Clinton E.P.A. (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times

December 15, 2003 - The Nation's Top Scientists Speak Out on Mercury Pollution; New Research Suggests Delays May Be Harmful - Hubbard Brook Research Foundation via U.S. Newswire

December 16, 2003 - Bush offers proposal to cut mercury levels - Market-based plan would give plants 15 years to upgrade - Los Angeles Times via San Francisco Chronicle

December 16, 2003 - School district sues state over No Child Left Behind Act - AP via pennlive.com - "The state's fifth-largest school district sued the Pennsylvania Department of Education, objecting to the state's classifying 13 of its 19 schools as failing to meet academic standards under the federal No Child Left Behind Act."

December 18, 2003 - Broad plan to aid fight on autism - AP via Richmond Times-Dispatch - "The government has developed a broad, decade-long research plan to help fight autism, including hunting genetic causes of the complex brain disorder and providing better educational services for children who have it...Aiding the work will be a research partnership between government scientists and a parents' group, the National Alliance for Autism Research."

December 11, 2003 - FDA, EPA issue new warning on tuna - CNN

December 21, 2003 - Canaries in the mine - Evidence of chemical effects on kids mounts - Scripps Howard News Service - The Gleaner via www.myinky.com - "At Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Dr. Martha Herbert is seeing younger and younger children who have been prescribed powerful drugs because their behavior is 'so extreme.'...One 4-year-old was treated with Risperdol, an antipsychotic drug usually prescribed to adult schizophrenics, because she tried to kill a sibling. 'I've had several cases like that,' said Herbert, a pediatric neurologist. 'It's scary because this kind of thing hardly ever used to happen.'...Across the nation, evidence of a growing number of children diagnosed with attention, learning, behavioral and emotional disorders have perplexed doctors and researchers and worried teachers and parents....The disturbing conclusion some experts are reaching is that a significant share of these conditions may be caused by environmental toxins that interfere with brain development in children beginning in the womb and which may be lowering the intelligence of the population at large."

December 18, 2003 - Academy Harbor Consortium releases letter on mercury to President Bush - Letter cites EPA proposals to remove mercury from toxics list - New York Academy of Sciences via www.eurekalert.org

December 20, 2003 - Group stresses importance of early autism diagnosis - www.thestar.com.my

December 20, 2003 - ADHD: Separating Fact From Fiction - The Exceptional Parent via Mental Help Net

December 20, 2003 - Behavioral Intervention Therapies - The Exceptional Parent via Mental Help Net

December 19, 2003 - Vanderbilt researchers receive fellowships to support early identification, genetic causes of autism - http://kc.vanderbilt.edu

DAN! Mini Conference - sponsored by The Autism Research Institute - conference alert - January 17-18 in New Orleans, Louisiana

DAN! Spring Conference - presented by The Autism Research Institute - conference alert - April 16-18, 2004 in Washington, DC

Autism One 2004 Conference - Congressman Dave Weldon MD to deliver keynote address - conference alert - May 27-30, 2004 in Chicago, Illinois

December 21, 2003 - The Sound of Silence - by Lenny Schafer (with apologies to Simon and Garfunkle) - Schafer Autism Report

December 12 & 15, 2003 (part 2) - Schafer Autism Report

December 12 & 15, 2003 (part 1) - Schafer Autism Report

December 16, 2003 - Schafer Autism Report

December 17, 2003 - Schafer Autism Report

December 21, 2003 - Schafer Autism Report

December 9, 2003 - Chickenpox: why children's lives are at risk - http://aca.ninemsn.com.au  - "Chickenpox is a common condition, particularly among children. It's an illness synonymous with red, itchy spots all over the body, even the mouth, but few are aware just how serious this disorder can be. Today, ACA explores the dangers and why children's lives are being put at risk...'He gave us antibiotics, told us to give him a good bath in some oats or Pinetarsol to keep the itching down, just keep the fluids up and lots of bed rest.'...'In the end he [Jesse] was pumped up with adult drugs and we were told about an hour beforehand he was going to die and there was nothing they could do about it,' says Renay."

Comment:  Why was a child who had chickenpox, a virus, given antibiotics, which are only effective against bacteria? What adult drugs?  What else did they do that might have led to this child's demise?

December 17, 2003 - Influenza activity further increases and spreads to more countries in northern hemisphere - update 4 - WHO - "According to the UK Office for National Statistics, the number of deaths from all causes is about average for this time of year in the past five years. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta report that the proportion of deaths attributed to pneumonia and influenza in the USA is below the "epidemic threshold" for the time of year."

Comment:  Say what? 

December 20, 2003 - Flu forces special measures - The Globe And Mail

December 20, 2003 - Hepatitis, Bankruptcy At Issue - AP via www.kentucky.com

December 20, 2003 - Businesses hope flu won't shut them down - www.thestate.com

December 20, 2003 - Employee sick leave policies differ - www.thestate.com

December 19, 2003 - Protecting Pregnant Women From Flu Dangers - www.wave3.com

December 20, 2003 - Defensive worries, flu plague Tigers - (subscription required) - The Daily Journal

December 20, 2003 - Reporting The Flu - www.thestate.com

December 19, 2003 - In face of flu, hospitals restrict visitors - The Cincinnati Post

December 19, 2003 - Pakistan: Japan pledges US $10 million for anti-polio drive - IRIN

December 19, 2003 - North Dakota influenza cases top 700 - The Bismarck Tribune

December 18, 2003 - Flu declining, but local officials wary -New strain could challenge vaccines - Houston Chronicle

December 19, 2003 - Following tips really can prevent bout of cold, flu - www.gomemphis.com

December 20, 2003 - Frenzy over flu - Sick children keep doctor’s office staff hopping all day and into the night - www.thestate.com

December 19, 2003 - US Checking to See if Flu Season Worse Than Usual - Reuters Health

December 20, 2003 - Singapore Lifts SARS Quarantine Orders - Reuters

December 21, 2003 - Leaky garbage bag likely cause of SARS return - AP via www.smh.com.au

Flu in Denver, Year 2003 - Toxicological Considerations (work in progress) - by Jim West - www.geocities.com/harpub/flu2003.htm

December 22/29, 2003 - New guidelines give specifics for pneumonia care - An update by the Infectious Diseases Society of America offers more detailed drug treatment recommendations for community-acquired pneumonia, while keeping an eye out for antibiotic resistance. - www.ama-assn.org

December 19, 2003 - New Study Suggests Higher Magnesium Intake May Reduce Risk Of Developing Type 2 Diabetes - PRNewswire via Boerse Pressemitteilung, Germany

December 19, 2003 - Tree rallies support for diabetics - www.townonline.com

December 21, 2003 - Making Malpractice Harder to Prove (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times - "Slowly and quietly, the rules regarding expert witness testimony in medical malpractice cases have been changing: a handful of states have passed legislation in the last two years that generally requires physician experts to work in the same field as a defendant doctor, while professional doctors' groups are setting up committees to review the testimony of their members."

December 21, 2003 - Wrongly accused -  Sunday Sun via icNewcastle, UK - "North parents of autism sufferers are being wrongly accused of harming their own children, experts claim...They believe families are being labelled potential abusers by social workers who are basing their decisions on the discredited theories of Roy Meadow...Now, however, experts in autism - a developmental disorder affecting the ability to communicate and socially interact with others - claim parents have been accused of Msbp when raising health fears about their kids."

December 20, 2003 - Girl's Parents Fault Hospital For Her Death - AP via The Tampa Tribune

December 20, 2003 - Law & Disorder: Teacher's aide fired after charge of child abuse - The Florida Times-Union

2003 - Impact of pharmacogenomics on neglected diseases of the developing world. - journal article (Am J Pharmacogenomics)

December 16, 2003 - British Ignite Debate in U.S. on Drugs and Suicide (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times

December 16, 2003 - Doctors Promote Healing, With a Zing of the String of a Harp (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times

December 15, 2003 - Blood Sugar Linked to Deaths in ICU - Ivanhoe - "Even a modest rise in blood sugar during a stay in the intensive care unit can increase someone’s risk of dying, report researchers who studied more than 1,800 consecutive patients admitted to the hospital for various causes."

December 15, 2003 - Antidepressants Harmful for Kids - Ivanhoe

*Note:  Starting December 10, 2003 news will be posted in the "daily news" pages based on when it was posted on this website, not by publication date.