Vaccination NewsLetter: Top Stories - posted December 15-21, 2003
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Picks of the week - posted 12/24/03
Smallpox/smallpox vaccine
December 12, 2003 - U.S. to Assist Emergency Workers Hurt by Smallpox Vaccine - Associated Press via www.immunizationinfo.org
December 8, 2003 - Kit developed to fight smallpox terrorism - Japan Today - "Police and the Tokyo metropolitan government have developed a special kit to diagnose smallpox cases in the shortest possible time, on the assumption that Japan may face bioterrorism, police and Tokyo government sources said Sunday."
Frist bills/Eli Lilly et al protection/VICP - for more, click here
Other Bioterror-related
December 18, 2003 - Homeland Insecurity - Mother Jones - "Efforts by the U.S. government to create an effective, comprehensive strategy against terrorist attacks have lost momentum, while Americans, paradoxically, have become complacent about the terrorist threat. So says a federal report released this week."
December 8, 2003 - Injections Said to Hamper Bioterror Fight - AP via ABC News - "Coming up with medicines that can be given in a nasal spray or by slapping on a patch rather than injections would be a big help in developing and stockpiling vaccines against major bioterrorism threats, an official involved in the government's Project Bioshield said Sunday...Trying to prepare and administer injections to the entire populations of even just major urban areas would be unwieldy and impractical, Dr. Philip K. Russell said in a talk wrapping up a meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene in Philadelphia."
Autism
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 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 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 21, 2003 - The Sound of Silence - by Lenny Schafer (with apologies to Simon and Garfunkle) - Schafer Autism Report
December 18, 2003 - Parents, schools bear high cost of autism - The Sacramento Bee - "Jackson's tutoring sessions teach him communication and behavioral skills that are intuitive to non-autistic children -- sessions that put him and thousands of other autistic children at the center of a growing dilemma for California. Experts say these intensive treatments are the only technique proven effective in giving autistic children the skills they need to live independent lives...Yet with the state's autistic population doubling in the past four years, the success of these life lessons and their high costs -- as much as $60,000 a year per child -- threaten to overwhelm school districts already struggling to balance their budgets."
December 18, 2003 - Love and despair: Ohio families struggle to provide medical treatment for their children - Families of sickest kids crushed by soaring costs and state aid cuts - Lancaster Eagle-Gazette
December 19, 2003 - Governor decides not to slash aid to disabled - Plan was a mistake, Schwarzenegger says - The Mercury News - "A month ago, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, long an advocate of programs for the developmentally disabled, shocked backers of these services when he announced he was slashing millions in aid to those with autism, cerebral palsy and mental retardation...Thursday, Schwarzenegger, whose Kennedy family in-laws started the Special Olympics, confirmed he had made an about-face and decided not to trim the aid, saying it was all a mistake.
December 17, 2003 - The puzzle of autism - Congress will vote on a bill that could curtail the right to an education for disabled students; That is not the answer - The Mercury-News via www.bayarea.com
December 15, 2003 - West Virginia to launch nation's first registry to track autism - www.dailypress.com
Autism/mercury
December 12, 2003 - Panel urges more fish-mercury safety advice - AP via CNN
December 11, 2003 - FDA, EPA issue new warning on tuna - CNN
June 2003 - Neurodevelopmental Disorders after Thimerosal-Containing Vaccines: A Brief Communication - journal article (Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine)
December 14, 2003 - Let it flow, let it flow? - by Molly Ivins - Star-Telegram - "I can't tell whether this administration is flaunting its cynicism, its contempt for science or its conviction that, when in power, you help your contributors and fry your enemies -- although how millions of small children and unborn fetuses came to be enemies of George W. Bush & Co. is beyond my political or theological understanding...We are talking about the rollback announced last week in regulating mercury pollution. Except, of course, that it wasn't announced as a rollback -- it was announced as a great step forward."
December 12, 2003 - Meeting Shows Power Politics In Children's Health - http://nebraska.statepaper.com – “Is there a hotter topic right now than flu shots? Maybe child protective services in Nebraska. Or how to get a handle on government spending, especially for health care and education…A Thursday night meeting in Omaha combined all three with a look at whether mercury in childhood vaccines is causing the skyrocketing rates of autism and other learning disabilities, and what's being done about it.”
Autism/MMR
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."
The latest Rapid responses to Hear the Silence - by Elliman and Bedford (BMJ)
The latest Rapid responses to Hear the Silence - by Fitzpatrick (BMJ)
December 20, 2003 - A Mercury Non-Policy - Washington Post editorial - "Or maybe both federal agencies should take a lesson from the District: Determine what is really hazardous, be clear about it, resist pressure to hush it up -- and then get the cleanup going."
Comment: Sounds like a plan.
December 18, 2003 - Ex-teacher arrested in mercury spill incident - AP via The Enquirer - "A former biology teacher at Sacred Heart Academy was arrested for allegedly trying to clean a small amount of mercury that spilled without alerting school officials...When mercury is spilled in a classroom, the students are supposed to be evacuated and the room sealed off, school and health officials said."
Comment: But inject huge doses into tiny babies? Not to worry. It's the good kind of mercury, the kind that can't hurt you, that we've been injecting into them.
December 18, 2003 - Fears over fall in uptake of MMR jab - EveningNews24, UK - "THE number of parents opting to give their children the controversial MMR vaccine has dropped in Norwich and Norfolk...The five per cent drop in uptake of the vaccine, which protects against measles, mumps and rubella, but has been linked with autism, reflects the national trend of more parents shunning the treatment."
December 16, 2003 - Plaudits and condemnation for MMR drama - icWales, UK
December 17, 2003 - A question of faith - The MMR debate is now just noisy overkill. I'd rather wallow in ignorance than hear another word of it - The Guardian, UK - "The trouble is that the vaccination question is not merely personal but political. Your Country Needs You to vaccinate your child in order to protect other, vulnerable children in the community, runs the official argument. But you won't get the whole truth when doctors are paid incentive fees to vaccinate and drug companies are involved, goes the counter-spin. This is not so much a discussion as a race for moral high-ground, each side wielding childhood death and damage statistics like light sabres in the dark."
December 17, 2003 - Docs Fury Over MMR Show - Daily Record, UK
December 17, 2003 - Bill would allow right to free single jabs for MMR - The Herald, UK - "PLANS to give parents the right to free single vaccinations for MMR were presented yesterday by the Scottish Socialists...Carolyn Leckie, SSP list MSP for Central Scotland, who is also a midwife, unveiled a proposed back-bench bill to go before the Scottish Parliament encouraging worried parents to choose single vaccinations instead of the all-in-one MMR jab, which has been suspected by some health experts of being the cause of the rising incidence of autism...Although Ms Leckie's move is unlikely to become law because of executive insistence that there is no scientifically proved case against the single vaccination, it is certain to provoke heated debate at Holyrood."
December 17, 2003 - MSP bid for single MMR - The Scotsman
December 16, 2003 -
New support for MMR doubts - www.femail.co.uk - "The safety of the MMR vaccine has again been called into question as a study appeared to back the British doctor who first linked it to autism and bowel disease...Dr Andrew Wakefield's findings have been dismissed as flawed by Government scientists and the Department of Health, who say they have not been replicated by other researchers...But experts at New York University School of Medicine have found independent support for his concerns over the measles, mumps and rubella jab."December 15, 2003 -
Medics slam 'distorted' MMR drama - Leading child health experts have called a drama about the MMR vaccine "distorted" and "entirely unbalanced". - BBCDecember 16, 2003 -
'Antibiotics link' to MMR and autism - www.femail.co.uk - "Antibiotics may be to blame for hundreds of children developing autism after having the controversial MMR jab, it has been claimed...More than two-thirds of youngsters with the condition received four or more antibiotics in their first year, a survey revealed."December 15, 2003 -
MMR TV Drama 'Reckless and Misleading', Say Experts - The Scotsman - "Top child health experts today criticised a TV drama about the controversial measles, mumps and rubella vaccine as 'irresponsible, reckless and entirely unbalanced'...Hear the Silence, due to be broadcast on Five tonight, tells the story of a woman whose child has autism which she believes to be linked to the triple jab...But in a open letter signed by 11 leaders in child health issue, they accused the docu-drama of increasing the anxiety of parents whose children were due to be given the jab."December 16, 2003 -
TV drama sparks MMR fear - This is London - "Health chiefs today feared a huge slump in MMR uptake after a television drama portrayed the triple vaccine as unsafe...Thousands of parents are expected to reject the controversial jab after the screening of Hear The Silence by Channel Five last night...The drama, seen by up to two million viewers, suggested a strong link between MMR and autism and bowel disease."December 14, 2003 - E-News: MMR RIP? - The Sunday Times Magazine, UK via www.nvic.org - "NVIC Note: This is a long article to read but well worth the time to understand the controversy over MMR and autism and the battle of Andrew Wakefield."
December 16, 2003 - My Conscience Is Clear, Says Doctor - The Bath Chronicle - "The controversial Bath doctor who first raised concern over the safety of the MMR vaccine last night said his conscience was entirely clear as the row over his claims intensified. As a TV drama reignited the debate over the triple inoculation system, gastroenterologist Dr Andrew Wakefield came under renewed fire over his suggestion of a link with autism."
December 16, 2003 - Mothers alarmed after TV MMR drama - The Guardian, UK - "Last night's television drama about the controversial theory linking the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine to autism has made parents even more worried."
December 16, 2003 - MMR row fails to stir audiences - The Guardian - UK - "Despite all the controversy surrounding Channel Five's MMR drama Hear the Silence, the show starring Juliet Stevenson attracted little more than a million viewers last night."
Comment: A million is not chicken feed.
December 15, 2003 - A missed chance to jab the MMR doctor where it hurts - Times Online - "Here was a golden opportunity to put Wakefield on the spot in front of millions of viewers and for a specialist to point towards the mountain of evidence casting such a convincing shadow over his molehill. But, in a disgraceful pique of high- mindedness, the opportunity was squandered. Instead, the defence of the triple jab was left largely to people such as Dr Evan Harris, MP, and Dr Michael Fitzpatrick, who has a son with severe autism and remains fiercely pro-MMR."
December 16, 2003 - Trust me, I'm a doctor - The Guardian, UK - "Hear the Silence's power lay in its believability, one which no amount of out-of-hand dismissal will dispel."
December 14, 2003 - Channel defends MMR jab drama - The Guardian, UK
Autism therapies/education/medicine (including high cost of) - NEW!
December 18, 2003 - Parents, schools bear high cost of autism - The Sacramento Bee - "Jackson's tutoring sessions teach him communication and behavioral skills that are intuitive to non-autistic children -- sessions that put him and thousands of other autistic children at the center of a growing dilemma for California. Experts say these intensive treatments are the only technique proven effective in giving autistic children the skills they need to live independent lives...Yet with the state's autistic population doubling in the past four years, the success of these life lessons and their high costs -- as much as $60,000 a year per child -- threaten to overwhelm school districts already struggling to balance their budgets."
December 18, 2003 - Love and despair: Ohio families struggle to provide medical treatment for their children - Families of sickest kids crushed by soaring costs and state aid cuts - Lancaster Eagle-Gazette
December 19, 2003 - Governor decides not to slash aid to disabled - Plan was a mistake, Schwarzenegger says - The Mercury News - "A month ago, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, long an advocate of programs for the developmentally disabled, shocked backers of these services when he announced he was slashing millions in aid to those with autism, cerebral palsy and mental retardation...Thursday, Schwarzenegger, whose Kennedy family in-laws started the Special Olympics, confirmed he had made an about-face and decided not to trim the aid, saying it was all a mistake.
December 16, 2003 - Repligen Affirms Data Release Timeline for Phase 3 Clinical Trial of Secretin - Repligen Corporation via PRNewswire-FirstCall via www.omniomix.com
December 14, 2003 - Tri-state Families Sacrifice To Care For Special Needs Kids - www.wcpo.com - "Thousands of Tri-state families are being forced to make tough choices every day that ultimately affect whether their children live or die...Often these children are severely disabled and because of the cost of their medical bills, their parents sometimes have to choose between food and medicine."
December 2003 - Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine Among Children Recently Diagnosed with Autistic Spectrum Disorder - journal article (Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics) - "The authors' review of 284 charts of children seen at the Regional Autism Center of The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, found that more than 30% of children were using some CAM, and that 9% were using potentially harmful CAM. Having an additional diagnosis was protective against CAM use and being Latino was associated with CAM use. Having seen a prior provider regarding the child's health condition was predictive of potentially harmful CAM use."
Autism and vaccines
Immunization Safety Review: Vaccines and Autism - Institute of Medicine - meeting alert - "The ninth meeting of the Immunization Safety Review Committee will be held on February 9, 2004, at the Keck Center of the National Academies, 500 Fifth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001, Room 100. This meeting will be part of the information gathering process of the committee and is open to the public."
AIDS/HIV/AIDS vaccine
December 12, 2003 - New HIV Vaccine Trial Here - New York Blade - "Only nine months after VaxGen reported disappointing results for its AIDS vaccine, the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) are stepping up to the plate...The two groups will test a DNA-based vaccine, called Advax, on healthy, non-HIV infected volunteers in New York and Rochester. The vaccine is specifically targeted at the “C” strain of HIV, the greatest risk to people in China and developing nations where HIV infection rates are skyrocketing."
December 2003 - HIV vaccine candidate fails in Thailand trials - VaxGen’s vaccine candidate was not effective in preventing HIV or slowing the progress of HIV. (requires registration) - Infectious Disease News - "The vaccine candidate did not show efficacy for either primary or secondary endpoints, company officials said, the primary endpoint being the prevention of HIV infection. The secondary endpoints concerned whether vaccination slowed disease progression in those who later contracted HIV. The vaccine candidate appeared well tolerated with no serious adverse events related to the vaccine."
December 15, 2003 - Multiple Meanings: The Instructive Cases of Tomatoes, HIV and AIDS, and How Rigid Thought Patterns and Our Uses of Language Steer Our Beliefs - by RFD Columnist David Crowe - www.redflagsdaily.com - " “Is a tomato a fruit or a vegetable?” asks the teacher. “A vegetable!” shout the children. “Wrong,” replies the teacher with a smug look, “It’s a fruit.” Both are wrong, although the teacher bears more responsibility for propagating false fruits and for using rote humiliation to substitute for learning."
December 13, 2003 - Africa isn't dying of Aids - The headline figures are horrible: almost 30 million Africans have HIV/Aids. But, says Rian Malan, the figures are computer-generated estimates and they appear grotesquely exaggerated when set against population statisics. - The Spectator, UK
Alzheimer's disease/vaccine
December 16, 2003 - Stroke victims more likely to develop Alzheimer's - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel via The Seattle Times
Anthrax/anthrax vaccine/Gulf War Syndrome
December 18, 2003 - U.S. judge dismisses military lawsuit - He says 1950 doctrine prevents family's effort - Detroit Free Press - "Even the judge who threw out the case said there ought to be a better law...But under the Feres Doctrine of 1950, a family apparently can't sue the U.S. military for neglect in the questionable death of a boot camp recruit."
December 18, 2003 - Tracking Gulf War Veterans' Health - Ivanhoe Newswire via www.wave3.com - "A new study shows the health of Gulf war veterans has improved in recent years, but is still poorer than that of other military personnel. In another study, researchers found Gulf war veterans are not at an increased risk for cancer."
December 14, 2003 - Guardsman given discharge, jail for refusing anthrax shots (requires subscription) - The Columbus Dispatch via www.milvags.org (includes commentary) - "The first Army Ohio National Guard member charged for refusing to take the anthrax vaccine was sentenced yesterday to 40 days in jail and a bad conduct discharge...Spc. Kurt Hickman, 20, had worried about health risks of the vaccine, but Military Judge Col. Emmett Moran said at the end of the court-martial at Beightler Armory that putting on the guard uniform can be a health risk. Disobeying a lawful order also endangers others, Moran said."
Autoimmunity/autoimmune disease
Behavioral disorders, chronic disability - NEW!
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 17, 2003 - Problems in Learning Can Be Difficult to Diagnose - The Augusta Chronicle via www.healthy.net
January 2004 -Developmental, behavioural and somatic factors in pervasive developmental disorders: preliminary analysis. - journal article (Child Care Health Dev) - "RESULTS: Preliminary results showed general agreement with the principle diagnostic differences between the PDD subgroups with patients diagnosed with AS showing an increased frequency of skills acquired before symptom onset (two- to three-word phrase speech, toileting skills) and a decreased frequency of regression in acquired skills when compared with other PDD subgroups. Developmental milestones such as the achievement of bowel and bladder continence were also more frequently reported for the AS group..."
December 16, 2003 - Poll finds 30 percent of families have children with learning disorders - Sripps Howard News Service via www.islandpacket.com - "One in every three American families has had to cope with a child with a learning disability or a mental illness and most people believe such problems are increasing, according to a poll by Scripps Howard News Service and Ohio University...In a national survey of 1,054 people, 65 percent said they believe learning disabilities are becoming more common and 72 percent said mental health problems are becoming more common...Thirty percent of poll respondents said they have had a child under age 18 in their family - a brother or sister, son or daughter, niece or nephew, grandchild or first cousin - diagnosed with a learning disability. Eight percent said they have had more than one child diagnosed with a learning disability."
Comment: But in the (special) interest of preserving the status quo, let's ignore one of the most likely probable causes, i.e., vaccines.
December 16, 2003 - Evidence of chemical effects on children mounts - Scripps Howard News Service via The Albuquerque Tribune - "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...Epidemiologists caution that personal observations or even documented trends in diagnosis are not proof that any of these disorders is increasing in children. Only a national study that investigates and tracks tens of thousands of children - something that has never been done in the United States - would be able to determine the true prevalence of these problems and whether they are actually increasing...Over the years, scientists have repeatedly lowered their estimates of how much mercury people can tolerate. The same is true for lead, which has been known for over a century to cause brain damage."
Comment: What, no mention of vaccines?
Comment: And, pray tell, given the alarming rise in the number of children with developmental disabilities, why has "a national study that investigates and tracks tens of thousands of children...never been done in the United States"?
December 12, 2003 - Tests could leave some children behind - www.pittsburghlive.com - "But Education Secretary Rod Paige recently said officials will revise the regulations to allow no more than 1 percent of a school's students to use alternate special education tests, instead of the PSSA tests. Pennsylvania education officials say they have been allowing the most severely disabled children to take alternate PSSA tests for some years...But the question is whether that 1 percent figure under the new federal No Child Left Behind law is adequate."
Comment: Giving the skyrocket rates of disability, it certainly would, sadly, seem as if 1% would be inadequate.
Cancer/cancer vaccines
Cardiac - NEW!
December 16, 2003 - Pollution Linked To Heart Disease - "It certainly did surprise us when we first observed these results. We just anticipated that breathing particles into your lungs would most likely have a direct impact on your lungs.' - C. Arden Pope III, BYU. - AP via www.cbsnews.com
Chickenpox/chickenpox vaccine
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?
Diabetes
December 11, 2003 - Scientists discover connection between obesity and diabetes - Eleanor Roosevelt Institute and The Bawmann Group via www.eurekalert.org
December 19, 2003 - New Study Suggests Higher Magnesium Intake May Reduce Risk Of Developing Type 2 Diabetes - PRNewswire via Boerse Pressemitteilung, Germany
December 15, 2002 - Cod-liver Oil for Babies Can Ward Off Diabetes - Daily Mail via www.healthy.net
Diphtheria/diphtheria vaccine
Ebola/ebola vaccine
December 15, 2003 - Promising results for Ebola drug - A treatment for the terrifying Ebola virus boosted survival rates in animal tests, scientists report. - BBC
Flu/flu vaccine or "Everything you always wanted to know about flu, but were afraid to ask"
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 19, 2003 - US Checking to See if Flu Season Worse Than Usual - Reuters Health
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 20, 2003 - Flu has killed 42 children, teens, CDC says - Washington Post via www.azcentral.com - "Because the federal government doesn't usually collect statistics on flu cases and deaths, Gerberding said it remains unclear whether more children are dying this year than in previous years. But the fact that the agency has taken the unusual step of collecting the data this year and for the first time released a tally is a sign of concern among federal health officials."
December 20, 2003 - Specter of Flu Outbreak Haunts Doctors - The Herald-Sun - "Some U.S. hospitals are already struggling to deal with the current flu outbreak. But that is nothing compared to what would happen if a powerful new flu strain exploded into a worldwide flu outbreak, known as a pandemic...Patients would overwhelm hospitals, and the overflow would have to be housed elsewhere, such as schools -- which would already be closed. Nurses, already in short supply, could not possibly get to everyone. And there would be even fewer doctors and nurses once they, too, started getting sick...There would not be enough antiviral drugs or ventilators to take care of the elderly, who are most at risk of dying from flu."
December 18, 2003 - Fighting flu not a priority - Knight Ridder via The Miami Herald - "The flu kills 36,000 Americans a year, but the federal government spends only about half as much money on research to fight it as it spends to attack the boll weevil, a pest that eats cotton."
December 19, 2003 - Wash Hands Often, Sanitize Surfaces To Prevent Flu - www.wave3.com
Comment: Remind me, then, why just about everyone is supposed to get a flu shot? Who, exactly, does this benefit, other than the vaccine manufacturers and those with financial ties to them?
December 20, 2003 - Fear of litigation hits supply of flu vaccine - Financial Times - "These factors represent a combination of American dilemmas. Tort liability limits the number of vaccine makers. The profit potential in the vaccine market is often too low to overcome concerns over liability for illnesses that could be traced back to vaccination. And disagreements exist over the appropriate level of government involvement...Bill Frist, the Senate majority leader from Tennessee, last week told a television audience that one cause for shortages was the 'high cost of litigation - the frivolous lawsuits that come from these little, tiny vaccines'."
Comment: "Little, tiny vaccines". What harm could they possibly do? Itsy-bitsy atoms. What harm could they possibly do? How reassuring.
December 20, 2003 - CDC Activates Center to Deal With Flu - AP via Newsweek
December 20, 2003 - Flu Experts: Worst Yet to Come - http://kfab-amhealth.ip2m.com
December 19, 2003 - Rough flu season highlights economic problems of vaccine industry - AP via www.canada.com - "This year, the drugmaker again produced 43 million doses - 35 per cent more than were ordered - and it sold out. It isn't supposed to be this way. The flu vaccine business is supposed to be predictable: Customers place orders so manufacturers know how much to produce and they don't lose money throwing away unwanted product."
December 19, 2003 - CDC Checking to See if Flu Season Worse Than Usual - "'We are referring to this as an epidemic of flu like we see every year,' she told a news conference. 'I think what we are experiencing here is a typical pattern of influenza with an early onset.'..Public attention has focused on this year's epidemic for several reasons. Influenza hit the United States early and killed several children early on. Gerberding said at least 42 children have died of flu so far this year...
At least 40 percent of the children who died had other medical conditions that made them vulnerable, she said."December 13, 2003 - Empire covers kids’ intranasal flu vaccine - Crain's New York Business - "Children aged 6 months to 9 years should receive two inoculations four weeks apart for full protection against the flu virus."
Comment: This must be a mistake! FluMist hasn't been approved for use by children aged 6 months to 5 years!
December 18, 2003 - Bayh Proposes Flu Protection Law - WTWO News - "It would require the Centers for Disease Control to do a better job of predicting the number of flu shots needed each year."
Comment: How on earth can you require the CDC to predict the future better?
December 18, 2003 - No autopsy sought for infant - The Cincinnati Enquirer - "Olivia had received half a dose of the flu vaccine this fall, the dosage recommended by her doctor, her parents said."
Comment: Do vaccinated infants and children die because of the flu vaccine or in spite of it? We'll never know the answer to this question until and unless properly designed population studies comparing the vaccinated to the never vaccinated are conducted.
December 12, 2003 - Update: Influenza Activity --- United States, 2003--04 Season - CDC/MMWR
December 17, 2003 - Health council: Flu not a crisis - www.mass.gov via www.townonline.com - "There is no precise count of flu cases in the state because so few illnesses are reported to doctors, but officials said they have investigated 17 outbreaks - identified as three to five cases clustered in one location - mostly in nursing homes but also in several schools. Emergency rooms, already crowded with slip-and-fall accidents after a week of icy weather, are nearing capacity, with many reporting a spike in flu cases, health officials said."
December 18, 2003 - Experts: Flu worst in 30 years in West - Could be worse that Hong Kong flu of 1968-69 - AP via Daily Southtown - "The current flu outbreak is the worst for young U.S. children in years, several experts say, perhaps worse in Western states than the Hong Kong flu of 1968-69...A government epidemiologist and other disease doctors predict flu deaths among babies and toddlers will exceed the estimated 92 who die in an average flu year."
December 18, 2003 - Comments re: Flu outbreak worst in 30 years in the West, experts say - The Daily Herald
December 17, 2003 - Race May Be Factor in Who Gets Flu Shots - HealthDayNews via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution - "Older black Americans have drastically lower flu vaccination rates than older white Americans, says a Duke University Medical Center study in the online journal BioMed Central Public Health."
December 19, 2003 - Flu
is spreading but exact numbers are hard to pin down - AP via Sun-Sentinel -
"How many will have died when it is over? Probably tens of thousands. Beyond
that, exact numbers are hard to pin down...The reason: Most people who catch the
flu never go to a doctor. And even if they do, they usually never get a definite
diagnosis...The flu is difficult to distinguish from other winter viruses. In
most cases, there is little reason for doctors to go to the trouble of
identifying the culprit, which traditionally has required growing the virus in a
culture, a process that takes two weeks...Even if they do, chances are good they
will find nothing."
Comment: But, hey, why should the fact that we don't
know if it is an epidemic, or if more or less people are dying than usual, or
even if it is flu that people are getting, prevent the media and others from
creating hysterical demand for the flu vaccine?
December 19, 2003 - Flu is now rampant in 36 states, CDC says - Tens of thousands may die. A true toll will be hard to get since many never go to the doctor. - AP via The Philadelphia Inquirer
Comment: Probably didn't go to the doctor because they got over it just fine without one.
December 18, 2003 - Flu-research money lags other diseases - Knight Ridder Tribune via Tallahassee Democrat - "The flu kills about 36,000 Americans a year, but the federal government spends only about half as much money on research to fight it as it spends to attack the boll weevil, a pest that eats cotton."
December 18, 2003 - One in three children could get flu this winter - www.ananova.com
December 18, 2003 - More Than Flu Vaccine Shortages - JAMA via Ivanhoe Newswire via www.drkoop.com - "In their new report, NVAC members say, beginning in late 2000, significant "unprecedented and unanticipated" shortages of routinely administered vaccines occurred in the United States. They say 11 childhood diseases are routinely prevented through vaccinations. Of those, eight vaccines were undersupplied."
December 2003 - Pandemic flu vaccine trials and reverse genetics: foundation for effective response to next pandemic - NIH officials are hoping to ensure an adequate global supply of influenza vaccine. (requires registration) - Infectious Disease News - "When the last influenza pandemic occurred in 1968, the NIH conducted several clinical trials of inactivated vaccines. The studies had little practical impact because few doses of influenza vaccine were then being used in the United States and other countries. The current situation is very different. In the United States, approximately 90 million doses of influenza vaccine will be used this year. Vaccine coverage among the elderly exceeds 65%, vaccination is increasing among younger adults and recommendations have recently been issued strongly encouraging vaccination of children."
December 19, 2003 -
US flu vaccine producers get $85m boost - Fund will help manufacturers ramp up output via animal-cell technology - The Straits TimesInfluenza Virus Vaccine - Fluzone® 2003 -2004 Formula (pdf)
December 18, 2003 - Flu spreads across U.S. but no epidemic yet: CDC - Reuters - "Influenza is now widespread in 36 U.S. states and has been found in all 50, but the outbreak is not yet an epidemic, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday...People may be filling hospital emergency rooms thinking they have flu, but only about a third of suspect cases actually are influenza, the CDC said in its weekly report on death and disease."
December 18, 2003 - Why U.S. supply of flu vaccine fell short - Knight Ridder via The Seattle Times - "What went wrong?...U.S. health officials and drug companies say it was mostly bad luck, and the difficulties inherent in making vaccines...Critics say it was flawed decisions by both of the above. And they say officials should be more candid that this year's flu vaccine was formulated to protect against three older strains of the virus, but not against the new strain racing across the country."
December 19, 2003 - Vaccine shortage a question of timing - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - "If international health officials had discovered the Fujian strain of influenza a little earlier or if manufacturers had been able to speed up production, perhaps there would have been time enough to make a vaccine that was both the right type and the right quantity...That's not the case now."
December 18, 2003 - EBay pulls plug on sale of flu shots - The Boston Globe - "'Sure, this is unethical, but it's not a lot different from stuff we do in medicine every day,' Annas said."
December 17, 2003 - Flu panic proves contagious - www.townonline.com
December 18, 2003 - Virulent Flu Virus Threatens; Leading Homeopathic Medicine Offers Serious Relief - PRNewswire via Yahoo!
December 17, 2003 - More to Come From the Flu This Season, Experts Say - New York Times via Star Banner - "The full impact of this season's influenza is yet to be felt, particularly in the East, federal health officials said yesterday... 'We are probably in for a fair amount of activity yet to come over the next weeks,' Dr. Stephen M. Ostroff, a senior epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, said in a telephone news conference...He did not say, however, that this would necessarily be a severe season, and Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson said in the same news conference that 'we are hoping that we have got the worst behind us because it started early.'"
December 17, 2003 - Md. Schools Have Soap Dispensing Dilemma - AP via Newsday - "Frequent hand-washing to fight the spread of influenza is elementary, but it's a challenge at many schools, where soap dispensers have been removed from student bathrooms to curb vandalism...Public schools aren't required to provide soap, according to the Maryland State Department of Education. Local administrators must find their own solutions to such problems, Vicki Taliaferro, a state school health services specialist, said."
Comment: Gee, maybe finding a way to provide soap to teenagers would be a better way to influence flu and other disease transmission rates than recommending universal flu and other vaccines. Wonder how many other school districts don't provide soap to their students.
December 18, 2003 - Flu Hitting Unusually Hard at Young Kids - The Cincinnati Enquirer/Post - "Flu sweeping across the country appears to be hitting unusually hard at young children, and experts say occasional reports of deaths among otherwise healthy youngsters are especially worrisome...The flu is rarely fatal for the young, although it can cause severe illness. Some doctors in western states, where the disease has been worst so far, say this may be the most intense flu season for children since the Hong Kong flu of 1968-69...Federal health authorities do not keep records on flu cases or deaths, so precise data are sparse. However, officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said reports so far are troubling."
Comment: If they don't keep records on flu cases or deaths, how, on earth, can they be making these claims?
December 17, 2003 - How the Mass Media in the U.S. Created Flu Hysteria and Helped Drive the Vaccine Markets for the Makers of FluMist And Fluzone. - by RFD columnist Sherri Tenpenny, DO in the Online Vaccines Conference @ www.redflagsdaily.com
Comment: Important article
December 17, 2003 - Man gave unlicensed flu shots, state says - Registered counselor was charging $45 for each shot - King County Journal - "A man with no medical license who gave $45 flu shots here is under investigation by the state Department of Health and the Bellevue Police Department, officials said Tuesday...Officials and at least one parent are wondering if the shots actually contained vaccine."
Comment: Who knows what was in those vials?
December 17, 2003 - Two new drugs shorten flu, but rarely prescribed - Knight Ridder Newspaper via www.centredaily.com - "The drugs - marketed under the brand names Tamiflu and Relenza - can reduce the duration of the flu if taken early enough...But they've been slow to catch on among doctors and patients alike."
December 17, 2003 - Health measures can help prevent colds and flu - Toledo Blade via Scripps Howard News Service - "Will the bug that's going around come around _ to me? Does my kid's flu virus have my name on it? Will that guy coughing at work today make me sick? How can I dodge it?...The answers depend on the virus, for instance, and your own immune system."
December 17, 2003 - Flu scientist calls for new technique - 'Reverse genetics' method still needs government approval - Rocky Mountain News - "An experimental method called reverse genetics could have been used to create a flu vaccine to protect against the Fujian strain, which sparked this fall's early and intense outbreak in Colorado and other Western states, said Dr. Linda Lambert of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases...'The technology was there to make a Fujian vaccine candidate you could have given to the manufacturers,' Lambert said...But the technique, which targets individual influenza genes, hasn't been approved by regulatory agencies. Patent issues and financial roadblocks could further slow the adoption of reverse genetics and other emerging vaccine technologies."
December 16, 2003 - Run on Flu Vaccine Highlights Vaccine Woes - Reuters, UK - "The current run on influenza vaccine in United States highlights the neglected status of vaccines in general, health experts said on Tuesday -- but efforts are under way to improve vaccine technology and supply...The group also advised stronger liability protections for manufacturers; a requirement that manufacturers give advance notice if they are leaving the marketplace; and a national campaign to emphasize the safety and benefits of vaccines...'We don't value prevention in this country," said Dr. Paul Offit of Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and a leading vaccine expert.'"
Comment: By
"prevention", of course, Dr. Offit means vaccination, not practicing good health
practices like breastfeeding, washing your hands, eating properly, exercising,
drinking quality water, getting enough sleep, etc. And what this article
fails to mention is that while some may consider Dr. Offit an "expert", others
remain more circumspect about his credentials, given that he is
paid by the
vaccine manufacturers to teach doctors that
vaccines are safe, as well as a vaccine developer. (See
December 17, 2003 - Flu: What is all the hoopla? - by Randall Neustaedter, OMD - The Natural Health Newsletter - "'First SARS, then monkeypox, now the flu. How far can the media go in stirring up public hysteria and fear of diseases? Answer: as far as drug companies tell them. “Jump,” say the drug companies. “How high?” say their media cohorts. “High enough to sell all our new flu vaccine.'”
December 17, 2003 - Vaccinating against disaster - The Washington Times - "Parents are in a panic about getting their kids immunized as a flu epidemic spreads rapidly across America. But if Democrats (and some Republicans) get their way, the vaccine shortages will soon spread to medicines for other diseases... That's because Democrats want to apply the policies that produced the shortages — federal bulk purchase and distribution of old vaccines at government-controlled prices, combined with a refusal to pay for new technology in the name of cost containment — to every drug used for every disease, no matter how fatal."
December 16, 2003 - Congress seeks $150 million to upgrade flu vaccine production - CNN
December 16, 2003 -
Health officials warn parents to watch flu-stricken children closely - StarNewsOnline - "With two more North Carolina boys dying of influenza complications, state health officials are urging parents to keep a close watch on their children when they seem to recover from the flu...Both boys had flu symptoms for several days and appeared to be recovering until their condition worsened and they died, said State Health Director Dr. Leah Devlin...Autopsies showed the boys died from secondary infections, one a pneumococcal infection and the other a meningococcal infection...'Secondary infections from the flu can be quite dangerous, because the person is already in a weakened state," Devlin said.'"December 12, 2003 - More accurate, speedy flu vaccine years from distribution - Denver Post via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution - "Top influenza researchers have developed a vaccine that they say can more accurately target any flu strain, even mutants like the Fujian bug that is sweeping mercilessly across the country...And scientists say drug companies could develop the vaccine much faster than the current flu shot by growing it in animal cells instead of eggs, where today's vaccine is born."
Comment: Given what we are learning about cross-species transfer of diseases and the difficulty in identifying and removing pathogens, is this really such a good idea?
December 12, 2003 - Flu likely a factor in deaths of elderly - Rocky Mountain News - "Several hundred of Colorado's elderly likely have died of flu-related complications in the past 30 days, a Denver geriatrician said Thursday..."It's very much underreported, even by doctors," said Dr. Greg Gahm, who tracks influenza at Colorado nursing homes. "If they meticulously tracked every death in the last month, they'd find several hundred elderly deaths, maybe more," attributable in part to the flu."
Comment: If they haven't been tracking it meticulously, how do they know when there are more or less flu deaths among the elderly?
December 14, 2003 - Vaccine for deadly flu scrapped - Experts alerted to dangerous Fujian strain, but found shot too risky - San Mateo County Times - "A leading national expert on infectious diseases told a Food and Drug Administration committee in February and again in March that it would be a mistake if this year's vaccine didn't guard against a potentially lethal strain of influenza that was beginning to emerge in the Southern Hemisphere... Dr. Peter Palese warned that the flu strain -- known as A-Fujian/411/2002 -- seemed likely to hit the United States and that drastic measures were required to protect public health. Creating a vaccine that offered only moderate safeguards against the new strain was a bad idea, he warned, according to official transcripts of FDA meetings earlier this year."
December 14, 2003 - Flu vaccine injects a dose of confusion - Questions are raised over its usefulness against the virus. - The Sacramento Bee - "'People who get vaccine have a much lower chance of dying,' said Dr. Roger Baxter, an infectious disease consultant with Kaiser Permanente. 'Vaccine is to prevent death, not to prevent flu.'"
Comment: Where on earth did he come up with that 'fact'? The only way of getting even close to knowing that would be to compare matched populations that did and did not get the flu vaccine. Although they clearly should be conducted, such studies simply are not being done.
Comment: And all of a sudden the vaccine is not to prevent the flu? What's that all about?
December 16, 2003 -
Flu, staph infection deadly - Newhouse News Service via Bridgeton News via www.nj.comDecember 16, 2003 - Government To Purchase FluMist at A Discount -
Deal Could Give Boost To MedImmune Vaccine - The Washington Post - "The company that makes FluMist, the needle-free influenza vaccine, agreed to sell up to 3 million doses to public health officials at less than half the $46 wholesale price amid a shortage of flu vaccine, the federal government said yesterday, which may ultimately boost faltering sales of the drug."Comment: Agreed to sell at less than half price a drug that wasn't selling??? Every where you turn the vaccine manufacturers get breaks no other company gets. And they will continue to get them as long as the public is hysterical about disease. For more on the cozy deal the vaccine manufacturers have, the dream business plan at the public's expense, click here.
December 12, 2003 - Doctors say flu outbreak not a cause for panic - The News-Times - "In the past, parents didn’t worry about their kids getting the flu. This year, for a variety of reasons — the deaths of 23 children nationwide, a shortage of vaccine, saturation coverage of the flu outbreak on cable news shows — they are...Dr. Jack Fong, chairman of pediatrics at Danbury Hospital, is trying to make sure unease about the disease doesn’t balloon into any real panic...Fong added that because of the communication revolution — cable TV, the Internet, all-news stations — people hear about any unusual illness much sooner than in the past."
Comment: First, there is only a shortage because of increased demand due to the creation of a panic atmosphere. And if there is, in fact, no need for panic, the following question should be asked: Is there anyone who serves to gain from a panic and increased demand for flu vaccine?
December 10, 2003 - Nasal Spray Vaccine - A Better Flu Vaccine? New Data Suggest Nasal Spray Vaccine May Give More Protection Against "Drifted' Strains. Such Strains Are Now Circulating, Says Saint Louis University Doctor Who Helped Develop the Vaccine - www.healthnewsdigest.com
December 16, 2003 - Toddler Dies Of Flu Complications - www.whiotv.com "Doctors said Trevor Hamilton's missing pituitary gland and cleft pallet had an impact on his immune system. That put him at high risk for the flu."
December 11, 2003 - Aetna to Cover Flumist® During the 2003-2004 Flu Season - Actions Enable Healthy Individuals to be Vaccinated, While Allowing Health Workers to Redirect Limited Supplies of Injectable Influenza Vaccine to High-Risk Individuals - www.aetna.com
December 15, 2003 - FluMist to the Rescue - Washington Post via www.immunizationinfo.org
December 11, 2003 - Flu Spreading in U.S. But Not Scary Yet -Officials - Reuters via Yahoo! - "The flu is spreading across the United States and the government is concerned enough to buy up 250,000 available doses of vaccine to make sure it goes to those who need it most, officials said on Thursday...But the influenza season is not especially serious yet and has not reached the level of an epidemic, said Dr. Julie Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (news - web sites)...Nonetheless, Gerberding and Health and Human Services (news - web sites) Secretary Tommy Thompson said they were happy with the media attention being given to the flu...'There has been a greatly increased interest in the flu this year. We hope that translates into more people, especially those at high risk, getting their flu shots early in future years,' Thompson told a news conference."
Comment: How is it that a "not especially serious (flu season) yet" got so hyped up that what resulted was a frenzied demand for flu vaccine?
December 15, 2003 - Panel reluctantly backed flu vaccine to FDA - Members of an advisory panel that backed this year's flu vaccine expressed doubts about its potential effectiveness before recommending it for the Food and Drug Administration's approval. - CNN
December 11, 2003 - U.S. Buys More Flu Vaccine as Outbreak Widens - The modest increase of 250,000 doses won't make a dent in demand, since the virus has hit all states and is "widespread" in 24. - HealthDay via www.healthcentral.com
December 11, 2003 - Experts Say Flu Vaccine Shortage Just Part of Ailing System in U.S. - Knight Ridder via www.wtev.com - The U.S. flu vaccine shortage -- one of seven vaccine shortages in the past two years -- is just the latest symptom of an ailing national vaccination strategy, public health experts and two federal reports say...'Our vaccine system is broke in that we're having these shortages,' Frank Sloan, a Duke University health economics professor, said Wednesday as federal officials scrounged for more flu vaccine overseas in the midst of a serious influenza outbreak."
December 11, 2003 - Senator wants more done about flu - South Dakota's Johnson: Response plan needed for nation - American News via Sun Herald - "Many states, including South Dakota, have influenza plans. Now, the nation needs such a blueprint."
December 12, 2003 - More accurate, speedy flu vaccine years from distribution - Denver Post via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution - "Top influenza researchers have developed a vaccine that they say can more accurately target any flu strain, even mutants like the Fujian bug that is sweeping mercilessly across the country...And scientists say drug companies could develop the vaccine much faster than the current flu shot by growing it in animal cells instead of eggs, where today's vaccine is born."
Comment: Given what we are learning about cross-species transfer of diseases and the difficulty in identifying and removing pathogens, is this really such a good idea?
December 12, 2003 - Doctors say flu outbreak not a cause for panic - The News-Times - "In the past, parents didn’t worry about their kids getting the flu. This year, for a variety of reasons — the deaths of 23 children nationwide, a shortage of vaccine, saturation coverage of the flu outbreak on cable news shows — they are...Dr. Jack Fong, chairman of pediatrics at Danbury Hospital, is trying to make sure unease about the disease doesn’t balloon into any real panic...Fong added that because of the communication revolution — cable TV, the Internet, all-news stations — people hear about any unusual illness much sooner than in the past."
Comment: First, there is only a shortage because of increased demand due to the creation of a panic atmosphere. And if there is, in fact, no need for panic, the following question should be asked: Is there anyone who serves to gain from a panic and increased demand for flu vaccine?
December 14, 2003 - Many People Resist Flu Shots - Miami Herald via www.immunizationinfo.org - "The CDC is concerned about the lack of interest in a flu vaccine and is looking for ways to understand patient apathy so that it might change the attitude in the future. Doctors note that many patients believe that the flu shot can make them ill, though the injected vaccine is not made with live virus and presents no risk of causing sickness. Other reasons cited for avoiding the flu vaccine include having gotten the shot in the past and feeling sick afterwards, general distrust of vaccines in general, and being healthy."
December 9, 2003 - Drug-Resistant Bug Complicates Flu - Bad Staph, Vaccine Shortage Add to Flu Worries - WebMD with AOL Health
December 14, 2003 - Scientists predicting worldwide flu plague - It's certain to come, and to be a deadly, drawn-out disaster - AP and files from Staff Reporter Charlie Anderson - "Think the flu warnings are gloomy now? You haven't heard anything yet...Consider this instead. It's only a matter of time until there's a worldwide outbreak of a strain so severe that in the industrialized nations alone, it will kill a half-million people, flood more than two million hospital beds -- and all in a sudden, unexpected crisis that no flu shot will prevent."
December 15, 2003 - Scientists agonized over less-than-ideal flu vaccine - AP via The Wichita Eagle - "Late last winter, a committee of vaccine experts designing this season's flu shot considered their choices. They had two, and both seemed bad...Should they stick with last year's formula, even though a new strain of the bug was ominously building strength? Or should they try to make a new vaccine and risk complications or delays that could result in a shortage or maybe even no vaccine at all?..In the end, the committee voted 17-1 to bring back last year's version, even though they feared they were telling millions of Americans to roll up their sleeves for shots that might not work very well."
December 13, 2003 - US 'wants British flu vaccine' - US health officials are considering buying thousands of doses of flu vaccine from Britain because it is running short of supplies. - BBC
December 12, 2003 - Flu Outbreak Spreads to All 50 States - http://apnews.myway.com
December 14, 2003 - Flu Virus From Bird Infects Boy in Asia - Experts Worried About Global Pandemic - Washington Post - "While the start of this year's flu season has been especially wretched, flu experts say it is not the killer pandemic they have been worrying about for years. They are more anxious about a little-noticed case that emerged last week in Hong Kong, where a 5-year-old boy was infected with a bird flu virus, because that is the sort of event that could spark a long-feared global health emergency."
Haemophilus Influenza/Hib Vaccine
Hepatitis A/hepatitis A vaccine
Hepatitis B/hepatitis B vaccine
December 2003 - Hepatitis B incidence among South Asian children in England and Wales: implications for immunisation policy - journal article (Archives of Diseases in Childhood)
Hepatitis C
Herpes/herpes vaccine - NEW!
December 11, 2003 - A New Vaccine For Herpes - AP via http://cbsnewyork.com - Experts from the CDC estimate that 75 million Americans have herpes, a painful and debilitating S-T-D. Once you're infected, the virus stays in your body for life. Now as CBS 2’s Cindy Hsu reports a new vaccine may keep you protected from infection in the first place...Chemical engineering student Mishele Kieffer is making medical history, 'I just had my third vaccination today and it’s been six months.'She’s testing what could be the first vaccine ever to prevent the sexually transmitted disease herpes."
IBD(inflammatory bowel disease) - NEW!
Lyme disease/lyme disease vaccine
Meningitis/meningitis vaccine
December 17, 2003 - Rationing for Vaccine for Meningitis - The New York Times - "pot shortages of a vaccine to prevent meningitis in babies have led the American Academy of Pediatrics to notify its members that the vaccine is being rationed and that if a widespread shortage occurs the vaccination schedule will be changed...The vaccine is Prevnar, made by Wyeth. It is not the same as the meningitis vaccine recommended for young adults living in college dormitories or barracks."
MMR/measles,mumps,rubella
December 19, 2003 - Use of rubella vaccine is growing worldwide, but more work remains - Pan American Health Organization via www.eurekalert.org
Comment: For another perspective on the advisability of widespread use of rubella vaccine to prevent congenital rubella sydrome, go to Scandals:
Is Rubella Vaccination Playing A Role In The Rise In Autism?December 19, 2003 - All women in Scots jails to get MMR jab - Evening Times, UK
Comment: Some people just live right.
Pet vaccines
Report of the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) Canine Vaccine Task Force: 2003 Canine Vaccine Guidelines, Recommendations, and Supporting Literature via www.dogs4sale.com.au - "The evolution of biologics represents a continuum of advances encompassing efficacy, safety, and usage. Early vaccines did not enjoy the same safety and efficacy profiles of currently available products, often resulting in adverse reactions or short durations of immunity (DOI). The resulting recommendations for revaccination reflected these product limitations, and most of the widely accepted recommendations for revaccination were based on a 'better safe than sorry' approach because the diseases these vaccines were designed to prevent were widespread and devastating."
Pneumonia/prevnar
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."