Vaccination NewsLetter: Top Stories - May 12-18, 2003

Note 1: Because this website is in "frames", it takes a little extra effort to create a unique "url".  In Microsoft's Internet Explorer, in order to bookmark, forward or copy the direct link, right click on the link you are interested in and click on "open in new window".  The page will now open with the correct url.  (If someone knows how to do this in Netscape, please email me at sandym@touchngo.com and I will publish those directions as well.)

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

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

Previous newsletters

Smallpox/smallpox vaccine

Smallpox Strategies Shifting - Inoculations Fall Far Short of Goals In Nation, Region - "With the campaign to vaccinate hundreds of thousands of health care workers for smallpox now at a virtual standstill for lack of volunteers, local public health officials are worried they might have to resort to a riskier plan for fighting the deadly disease: immunizing doctors and nurses after an outbreak begins." 

More Smallpox Vaccine Concerns - "There is new concern about the government's already troubled smallpox vaccination program. Few of the half-million healthcare workers eligible for innoculation under phase one of the program chose to get vaccinated...And some health experts are warning -- not so fast."

Nebraska Plans To Halt Smallpox Vaccinations - 1388 Nebraskans Vaccinated So Far

Secretary Thompson to Release $100 Million to Assist States With Smallpox

Smallpox Vaccinations Concern Health Officials - Nursing School Graduate Dies From Smallpox Vaccine

'What ifs' surround vaccine program - As first responders step up and get their smallpox shots, many still wonder whether the risk is too high.

A Forest Full of Trees - "The 55 year-old registered nurse was planning to move from Maryland to a Navajo reservation in New Mexico where she looked forward to incorporating her knowledge of conventional medicine with traditional Native American healing techniques...Sadly, she won’t have a chance to pursue that dream. Andrea suffered a fatal heart attack on March 23, just five days after receiving a smallpox vaccine as part of the U.S. government’s plan to inoculate emergency and healthcare workers."

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

Other Bioterror-related

(More Homeland Security related articles posted starting on June 4, 2003)  http://www.vaccinationnews.com/HomelandSecurity.htm

Autism

Letter from Congressman Burton to President Bush re: White House Conference on Autism

E-News: Autism Rise Should Trigger Studies (NVIC) - "A report issued by the California Department of Developmental Services (DDS) today reveals that California's autism population nearly doubled between 1999 and 2002 and the population of individuals with full syndrome autism served by DDS increased by 634 percent between 1987 and 2002. This report of continuing dramatic increases of autism in children follows a report released by the US House Government Reform Committee on May 3 which criticized the use of mercury preservatives in vaccines and pointed out the relationship between the increasing numbers of vaccines American children have received in the past two decades and the unexplained rise in autism in the U.S."

Autism parents left to struggle alone - Sufferers' families cope with round- the-clock caring with little or no help from social services

Autism: 'how diet cured my son'

Mother's plea over autism - A mother from south Wales is calling for more understanding of the problems of autistic children and adults.

Mind the gap - I am fascinated by autism and love my sons, but it is relentless. I cope by making sure I still have a life outside

Cost of autism program explodes - "The cost of a state program providing free intensive in-home therapy to autistic children has exploded to almost $32 million in the last six years... According to the state Department of Health and Family Services, the growth in the number of children diagnosed with the developmental disability has translated to a jump in service cost — from just $2,363 in 1994 to almost $32 million last year."

Statement on California Autism Report by Congressman Chris Smith, 4th New Jersey

Autism study prompts fears over mystery environmental factor

A dramatic increase in autism cases is reported in California. What does it mean? - "Any comment about the theory that the increase in autism may be attributed to certain vaccinations?... Enough attention has been attracted to this issue that independent research is under way. We probably won’t have answers [from those studies] for another couple of years."

Autism/mercury

Study: Fish Fine for Pregnant Women - It finds that mercury levels in the food won't harm their baby's brain. - Why am I not surprised that there is no mention of vaccinations as a source for mercury in children?

Autism/MMR

Autism and vaccines

Could Vaccines Cause Autism?

AIDS/AIDS vaccine

Is There an AIDS Vaccine? - 1 in 5 Americans think there is an AIDS vaccine and the government is keeping it secret.

Alzheimer's disease/vaccine

Anthrax/anthrax vaccine/Gulf War Syndrome

Gulf War Syndrome case: Jabs link - A British soldier has won a landmark judgment against the government linking injections with his so-called Gulf War Syndrome. - "A War Pensions Appeal Tribunal said that a "concoction of drugs" given to Alex Izett before the first Gulf War in 1991 was responsible for his osteoporosis, or brittle bone condition...Izett, a former Lance Corporal with the Royal Engineers, was injected with the same drugs as those soldiers who went to the war zone, despite not being sent himself."

Cancer/cancer vaccines

Chickenpox/chickenpox vaccine

Parents, MDs questioning chickenpox vaccine plan

Diphtheria/diphtheria vaccine

Flu/flu vaccine

Haemophilus Influenza Vaccine

Hepatitis A/hepatitis A vaccine

Hepatitis B/hepatitis B vaccine

Hepatitis C

Meningitis/meningitis vaccine

MMR/measles,mumps,rubella

PAS: Incidence Of Aseptic Meningitis In Mumps Vaccine Recipients Is Lower Than In Patients With Natural Mumps Infection

Pet vaccines

Pneumonia/prevnar

Impact of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine on resistance is unclear - It is too early for the receipt of the vaccine to change medical practice for young children. - "The pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7, Prevnar, Wyeth) protects against the seven serotypes that cause the most invasive disease in U.S. children and are the strains most likely to be resistant to antibiotics. Although it has been available to the public for two years, it is still too soon to change treatment regimens based on receipt of vaccine, Sheldon L. Kaplan, MD, said here."

Pneumonia vaccine may help heart, too - "Mice vaccinated using a bacteria that is a common cause of pneumonia developed high levels of an antibody that slows or halts the progression of heart disease, researchers working in California and Finland found...But the situation is far more complicated in humans than mice, said university colleague Joseph J. Witztum, a co-author of the paper."

Polio/polio vaccine

Global Polio Campaign Narrows Its Focus - Efforts Will Be Concentrated in 13 Countries in Which Disease Is Still a Threat

RECALLS

SARS

SARS drives Chinese to kill pets - Confusion over illness’ origins sparks panic in China - "Fear the flu-like SARS virus can be spread by dogs and cats is driving hundreds of people in China’s capital to kill or abandon their pets, animal rights organizations and veterinarians said on Wednesday...HOUSEHOLD PETS came under scrutiny after the World Health Organization blamed severe acute respiratory syndrome on a new form of the coronavirus, which causes the common cold and probably jumped to man from animals...But animal rights groups and scientists say there is no evidence pets can carry the virus, which has killed 219 people in China, infected 4,560 and spread panic in the world’s most populous nation."

SARS may be here to stay - Vaccines and tracking could benefit from slow mutation of killer virus genome.

China Threatens Execution in Intentional Spreading of SARS

SARS' Achilles' heel revealed - Drugs to treat common cold may be effective against the virus.

SARS Fears Prompt China to Suspend Adoptions

SARS spurs race for a cure -- and for patents - The coronavirus that causes the respiratory disease was discovered and sequenced in record time because of unprecedented international collaboration. Now everyone is staking a claim.

SBS (Shaken Baby Syndrome)

Yurko Case: Lost, Mishandled Evidence May Mean New Appeals - "Stunning revelations of forensic evidence missing from or mishandled by the Medical Examiners Office for Orange and Osceola Counties, located in Central Florida, shocked public defenders, defense attorneys and Floridians during October and may lead to a wave of new post conviction appeals by dozens or even hundreds of criminal defendants who are still in prison."

West Nile virus/vaccine

Does West Nile imperil your children? Maybe not - "It has been suggested at a couple of meetings that I was at: 'Forget the kids. If they get infected earlier, if they get sick, they are not likely to have serious consequences, and they are protected for the rest of their life.' This has been the experiences of the endemic countries," said Colin D'Cunha, Ontario's chief medical officer of health....All of which leads to the argument that it could be better to be infected early with a mild case of the illness -- especially if that protection will last you for life. It is a way of thinking, point out experts, that often prevailed before vaccines were available."

Whooping cough/DPT vaccine

“Whooping Cough Making a Comeback” - "Earlier this year, health officials in New Mexico reported the state’s first death from whooping cough since 1998, and statistics show that the number of cases has increased significantly in the past decade. There were about 7.4 cases of whooping cough per 100,000 people in New Mexico in 2001, compared to a national average of about three cases per 100,000. Infectious disease expert Joan Baumbach suggests, however, that both figures may be low because some cases may not be reported." - Note that this is the entire "article".  Note also that although they say the number has increased significantly over the past decade, they compare New Mexico figures in 2001 to nationwide figures in 2001, rather than to previous years in New Mexico.  It is also difficult to know how to interpret the fact that all figures may be under-represented.  The fact that some cases may not be reported suggests that the disease is either not being recognized, and/or is not very serious in those cases.

Other vaccines/screening

Vaccines in general

Scientists eye new developments on the vaccine front - The vast range of pathogens and their ability to mutate beyond the reach of many antibiotics continue to challenge researchers.

(Vaccine) additives & contaminants

Vaccine testing

Adverse reactions/VAERS/VICP

Neurological Complications of Vaccinations - "Neurological complications of immunizations have been recorded in the medical literature for many years, yet many physicians fail to recognize their clinical manifestations and identify their etiology. This is due in part to their rarity, and to the well-publicized, overriding public health benefits that make these complications easily overlooked. Yet they can be devastating despite the fact that early treatment is often successful."

Alternative Treatments/prevention

Researchers link vitamin B12 to ALS treatment

Even short walk reduces deadly clot risk in obese

Little Pharma Is A Business - Get Used To The Idea - "In recent weeks, people have been writing to me, asking that I come to the defense of the dietary supplement industry. Why? Because it is under attack by the FDA and global arrangements that will ultimately beat the industry down, allowing Big Pharma to take over supplements."

Breastfeeding (vs. formula)

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

Resistant bacteria remain public health threat - While new antimicrobial agents are in the pipeline, judicious use of currently available antibiotics continues to be a strong recommendation. - Why does this continue to even be an issue?  Shouldn't doctors have already gotten this message long ago?

Conflict of Interest

Death and Disease

Effectiveness/herd immunity

Ethics

Brains removed in organs scandal - "It is a scandal that could affect thousands of families across Britain. Reports published yesterday claim that brains from mentally ill and handicapped men and women have been illegally and systematically removed after death for the past 30 years and then kept for medical research."

Funding

Government/science/industry/medicine clearly run amok

Suit claims unnecessary surgeries at Tenet - The action is the most recent development in allegations that doctors at the hospital chain's subsidiary performed unwarranted procedures to boost revenue.  - "Tenet Healthcare Corp., the nation's second largest for-profit hospital chain, is being sued for allegedly creating heart patients out of healthy people as a means of boosting revenue...The lawsuit claims that doctors at the Redding Medical Center performed hundreds of unnecessary invasive heart procedures -- including some that led to death -- to increase profits at the Tenet subsidiary."

Doctor apparently suspected, but didn't warn of, hepatitis C

Autism parents left to struggle alone - Sufferers' families cope with round- the-clock caring with little or no help from social services

Children's agency funds study of men's sex lives - A federal children's health agency is funding a study of the sex habits of old men. - see quote from Congressman Weldon

‘Discarded’ Children? - Schools Failing Obligations to Learning Disabled Kids, Advocates Say

Brains removed in organs scandal - "It is a scandal that could affect thousands of families across Britain. Reports published yesterday claim that brains from mentally ill and handicapped men and women have been illegally and systematically removed after death for the past 30 years and then kept for medical research."

Lullabies In a Bottle: Prescribing For Children - "More than half of primary care pediatricians have prescribed drugs for sleep problems and nearly three-quarters have recommended over-the-counter medicines, a new study has found...The prescriptions have been issued even though no drugs have been approved for insomnia in children and no guidelines have been generally accepted for prescribing them."

Legal/legislation

Great News! Victory in Arkansas! First state to add a philosophical exemption to vaccination in over 20 years!

Lawmakers Try to Curb Stimulant Coercion in U.S. Schools

A malpractice verdict's human dimension - Award was large, but life is upended - "The millions help, but Bobbie-Jo Rivard would give it all away in seconds to walk her son Michael to school, to toss him a ball, help him with homework, or tuck him into bed at night. Or to simply hear him call for his mother...None of that will happen. Six years ago, she went into a Worcester hospital ready to give birth. Seven days later, after questionable medical care, her son entered the world barely clinging to life, his brain and nervous system permanently crippled...The Rivard family last year won the largest medical malpractice verdict in recent state history, $21.4 million, after a Suffolk County jury blamed three doctors for Michael's profound disabilities. Now 6, he cannot talk, eat or breathe through his mouth. He can't walk or stand or control his limbs. He has the mind of a 1-year-old, with little chance of progress."

*Pending Immunization Legislation - bookmark this link

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

Great News! Victory in Arkansas! First state to add a philosophical exemption to vaccination in over 20 years!

Lawmakers Try to Curb Stimulant Coercion in U.S. Schools

Pharmaceutical industry/pharmaceutical industry oversight

Politics

Research/publishing/other research results

Leaving Well Enough Alone - "One of parenthood's most daunting responsibilities is making medical decisions knowing they might affect your child for the rest of his life. While some decisions -- should we put a cast on that broken arm? -- are no-brainers (at least for those who can afford health care), lots of others are brainers indeed...The relative benefits and risks of a given procedure or drug can be difficult to evaluate, even for doctors. New information based on medical research can either clarify or muddy the waters. And as one generation of doctors trains the next and parents pass their wisdom on to their adult children (an act otherwise known as "meddling"), the burden of tradition can weigh heavy, even after the tradition has outlived its utility."

Red flag raised over 'normal' blood pressure - New guidelines: Risk starts at lower levels than once thought

Effect of passive smoking on health - More information is available, but the controversy still persists

New guidelines emphasize mammograms 

Letters From Parents &others

Miscellaneous

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