November  10, 2003                   

click here for "Recent Breaking News" and "Breaking News Archives"

Autism in a Needle - In These Times (how to purchase) - November 24, 2003 issue - may be available at Barnes and Noble

Studies describe heart disease following smallpox vaccination - American Heart Association via www.eurekalert.org - "Heart-related complications can occur after the smallpox vaccine, but symptoms are usually mild, according to three studies presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2003...Public health officials expected some adverse reactions associated with the smallpox program, but didn't anticipate heart complications, he said...'The smallpox vaccine appears to be associated with myocarditis and pericarditis, but so far disease has been mild in civilians who received the vaccine,' Schieber said."

Comment: Has the disease really been mild, or have possible serious cases merely been summarily dismissed as being related to the vaccine?  And should it have been a surprise? (For more on this, go to: Scandals: Whose job is it, anyway?)

Six Common Misconceptions about vaccination and how to respond to them - CDC

Comment: Notice that there are no references in this glibly reassuring document.  There are too many arguable points made in this article to address them all here, but for a different perspective on some of the points, go to these and other Scandals columns: Shoot First, Don't Ask Questions Later; More confusing disease stats; and  Infant Vaccine Deaths - But Who's Counting? (No news is NOT good news.)

Few in Bay Area try nasal flu vaccine - The Oakland Tribune - "Despite a $25 million television and print ad campaign touting the benefits of the nasal mist, local customers so far are turning their noses up at FluMist...The main drawbacks are the higher cost and restrictions on who can get the vaccine."

For another perspective on the new FluMist™ vaccine, go to Risks of FluMist Vaccine - An Investigation By Dr. Sherri Tenpenny, a featured article at the Online Vaccines Conference at Redflagsdaily.com

Flu season gets early start; public health pushes vaccine - A large outbreak hits Texas before many have the opportunity to get their shots - www.ama-assn.org

New Vaccine Tested in Animals May Hold Hope For Alzheimer's Patients - Scientists find that eating less can diminish symptoms - www.eurekalert.org

Campaign Launched to Vaccinate 3.5 Million Children - UN Integrated Regional Information Networks via www.allafrica.com

Vaccine side effects hit children - China Daily - "The health bureau of the city of Fushun, in Northeast China's Liaoning Province, has issued orders stopping the using of a flu vaccine that may cause infants to suffer fever and even twitching after vaccination...The vaccines were part of a supply of more than 1,000 vials of domestically made flu vaccine that the bureau purchased through legal channels, said Zhou, who refused to reveal the name of the producer."

Intravenous immunoglobulin for the treatment of Kawasaki disease in children - journal article - Cochrane Review

"Good Doctor" Frist Doesn't Care About Women's Health - N.O.W. - "Case in point: While the homeland-security bill was being drawn up at the end of the session in 2002, someone in the Senate inserted a two-paragraph provision that would shield pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly from lawsuits brought by parents convinced that a preservative used in the company's vaccines caused autism in their children. Frist never owned up to adding the provision, but it was nearly identical to one he had authored earlier in the session." (Spring 2003)

Gene Variant Linked to Autism - Science (requires fee)

2003 Worldwide Essay Contest Winners from Autism Arts Conference Connection - www.autismarts.com

Brita can't help you here...Mercury in Massachusetts water - The Tufts Daily

Shaken Baby/Impact Syndrome: Flawed Concepts and Misdiagnoses - Dr. Buttram via Vaccination Liberation

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS): An evolving hypothesis - www.purdeyenvironment.com via www.redflagsdaily.com (January 2003)

New Possible Link to SIDS Found - HealthDay via Yahoo! - "High levels of a particular cytokine in the brains of infants may be linked to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)"

Comment: Do vaccines ever raise the level of cytokines in the brain?

United States: Blood Banks Pass Up Test that Might Have Prevented Thousands of Infections - AP via www.aegis.com - "US blood banks in the early 1980s failed to use a screening test for hepatitis C that could have prevented thousands of infections, the Kansas City Star reported. The Star used data from studies at the time and estimated that if screening that detected an enzyme indicating liver damage had been implemented, more than 300,000 HCV infections might have been prevented."

HIV fear for women in smear tests - The Scotsman - "Letters are to be sent out this week to about 100 women who are at risk of contracting HIV after they were given cervical smear tests with "dirty" equipment at a West Lothian surgery."

Putting a Chill on Important Pills: Antibiotics Can't Cure Colds And Flus - And Overuse Puts All of US at Risk - New York Times Syndicate via MedlinePlus/NIH

3 Autoimmune Diseases Share a Genetic Defect, Scientists Find - The New York Times

A common cause - Common autoimmune diseases have a common basis - The Scientist

S.1015 - A bill to authorize grants through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for mosquito control programs to prevent mosquito-borne diseases, and for other purposes.

H.R.1298 - A bill to provide assistance to foreign countries to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria, and for other purposes.

Blood cell disease complex, can kill: Immune system under attack - My mutt Emily undergoing treatment - Akron Beacon Journal - "Vaccinations, drugs, toxins, parasites and infections have also been implicated, but none seem to apply in her case."

Mousepox Research Poses Controversy - The Badger Herald Online - "A St. Louis University professor has sparked controversy and ethical debate concerning public access to potentially lethal agents by creating a deadly version of the mousepox virus...Maki said that if published, the recipe for the creation of the virus will be available to all, and this is not very responsible. Others do not think the publication of the research poses a serious threat, and would not like scientific information suppressed."

Ebola caused by wild boar meat - www.news24.com
 

N.J. Helping Scotland In Mad Cow Fight - AP via www.intelihealth.com

Door to Door HIV Testing Due - New Vision via www.allafrica.com

Focus On Drawing On Traditional Remedies to Fight HIV/Aids - UN Integrated Regional Information Networks via www.allafrica.com - "This fusion of the traditional and modern is taking place in Tanga, a northeastern region on the Tanzanian coast, where the Tanga AIDS Working Group is combining modern voluntary counselling and testing methods with the knowledge of local healers in treating opportunistic infections associated with HIV/AIDS."

Drugs of 4 Patients Subbed Without OK - The Boston Globe (requires subscription) - "The Disabled Persons Protection Commission uncovered numerous ethical violations at the Solomon Carter Fuller Mental Health Center by Boston Medical Center physicians..."

Is Obesity A Disease? Insurance, Drug Access May Hinge on Answer - The Washington Post - "The rising number of Americans who are seriously overweight has triggered intense debate among scientists, advocacy groups, federal agencies, insurance companies and drug makers about whether obesity should be declared a "disease," a move that could open up insurance coverage to millions who need treatment for weight problems and could speed the approval of new diet drugs."

Comment: Or vaccines?

Support for breastfeeding mothers: a systematic review - journal article

Diet May Improve Cognition, Slow Aging, And Help Protect Against Cosmic Radiation - Society for Neuroscience via www.intelihealth.com

Strawberries may boost astronaut performance - Frozen fruit protects rats' brains from harmful rays. - Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, New Orleans, November 2003 via Nature

Copper May Guard Against Alzheimer's - Element appears to block buildup of harmful brain proteins, new studies show - HealthDay via www.healthcentral.com

Scientists find brain areas activated in true versus false memories - Make advances in understanding why false memories are formed - www.eurekalert.org - "The significance of this study and others using visual stimuli, according to Beversdorf and his group, is that it shows that false memories can develop during nonverbal tasks. Such findings may have implications for those with autism. High functioning autistic individuals can actually perform better than others on verbal false memory tasks. However, because atypical language processing is a defining feature of autism, it remains to be seen whether this unusually good performance for false memories can extend to nonverbal tasks."

Barberry may help boost immunity - Los Angeles Times

Exercise may speed spinal cord repair - Running boosts nerve talk in injured rats. - Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, New Orleans, November 2003 via Nature

Pilot study may give quadriplegics computer control - Human trial scheduled for brain sensors that turn thought into action. - Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, New Orleans, November 2003 via Nature

Study: Doctors often fail to give right heart care - AP via CNN

Redflagsdaily.com - www.redflagsweekly.com