CDC Data Shows Strong Relationship Between MMR Vaccine and Autism

NutmeggeRN, BSN · Dec 12, 2018

Okay, let's take the other side of the coin and assume your hypothesis is right and there is no link between autism and MMR. We are still left with these two FACTS!!
2) Prevalence of autism in African-Americans is approximately 25% higher than that of whites. Can you honestly say that's all due to better diagnosing?

So, then there should be a correlation that African American kids are vaccinated at a much higher rate than other children, is there?

RNNPICU, BSN, RN · Dec 12, 2018

After reading the article, i am not quite sure the authors truly demonstrated the proof needed to sufficiently prove the link. I think in the statistical analysis the CI should be at 99% not 95%. A multiple regression analysis would be better. Furthermore, the article highlighted AA males receiving a first MMR at age 36 months? That is fairly late. Autism in toddlers is now being diagnosed earlier and earlier. I think more providers are aware of characteristics and behaviors that may correlate with an autism diagnosis. Also, we now know that children can have varying levels on the spectrum. I think I would want to know from the researchers what criteria was being used to diagnosis, also, would be important to consider both maternal and paternal health at time of conception. Environmental factors could also be an important component.

The article appears to soley focus that the only plausbile cuase of autism is the MMR vaccine. To say rates are on the rise, it could be true because earlier detection, broader spectrum of defining characteristics that previously eliminated some children from the statistics, and an increasing population as a whole could be the more likely contributors. Vaccination rates have not changed too much, and more parents are opting to not vaccinate their children, which, who knows, is there a link to unvaccinated children and autism? Maybe/. I

I think the authors of this article became to narrowly focused and should have used stronger statistical analysis as well as using a tighter CI 99%. Especially because they want to be more certain.

DowntheRiver · Dec 12, 2018

Autism rates rising isn't an exact math. Modern autism wasn't really described until the 40s. Many doctors during this time mischaracterized it or simply combined it with other psychiatric disorders during this time. Heck it wasn't even separated from childhood schizophrenia until the 80s. Combine that with now mandatory screening that wasn't there two decades ago and it shouldn't be such a shock the numbers have "risen".

Yes, this comment!

Let us not forget what happened to children who supposedly had mental illnesses back in the day - they were institutionalized and left there forever.

My aunt was born with Down Syndrome in the early 1950's. She was immediately institutionalized and stayed there until she passed away at age 6 due to a heart defect. Nowadays, children with Down Syndrome live at home.

Look at the forgotten Kennedy sibling. She was kept away from the family, lobotomized, and when that failed she was institutionalized for the rest of her life, something like 60-70 years.

My point is that viewpoints on mental health issues have dramatically changed in the last 30-40 years, so no it is not unreasonable to expect that the number of individuals diagnosed as autistic has gone up since we've clearly made great strides in differentiating and treating these diagnoses.

familymrl3 · Dec 12, 2018

Also to piggyback on the previous folic acid arguments, African Americans are far less likely to receive adequate prenatal care. This leads to a disproportionate increased risk for a host of congenital abnormalities that would be there regardless of vaccinations.

Correlation doesn't prove causation and only serves your prejudices. If you want to use these standards of correlation to prove causation, you must also apply them to current research showing vaccine injuries in children are caused by inflammation and their inability to detoxify? Current research has shown that up to 82% of children with autism test positive for the XMRV retrovirus. Where does the retrovirus come from? Vaccines!!! (read the inserts) What do retroviruses do? Retroviruses insert themselves into the DNA through reverse transcription and lie dormit until it is actrivated through inflammation. What triggers the inflammation? Other vaccines!!! What happens after the XMRV retrovirus is activated? Brain inflammation resulting in autism spectrum disorders!!!

https://www.healthline.com/health-news/connection-between-inflammation-and-autism-052214#2

cmefford · Dec 12, 2018

For a thorough analysis of the flaws and misinformation associated with the current CDC autism "cover-up" conspiracy theory, we recommend the posts on the subject at ScienceBlogs, which note of the claim at the heart of this matter (i.e, allegedly suppressed proof of a 340% increased risk of autism in African-American boys after MMR vaccination) that:

Vaccination data were abstracted from immunization forms required for school entry, and records of children who were born in Georgia were linked to Georgia birth certificates for information on maternal and birth factors. Basically, no significant associations were found between the age cutoffs examined and the risk of autism. I note that, even in the "reanalysis" by Brian Hooker, there still isn't any such correlation for children who are not African American boys

So is Hooker's result valid? Was there really a 3.36-fold increased risk for autism in African-American males who received MMR vaccination before the age of 36 months in this dataset? Hooker [performed] multiple subset analyses, which, of course, are prone to false positives. As we say, if you slice and dice the evidence more and more finely, eventually you will find apparent correlations that might or might not be real. In this case, I doubt Hooker's correlation is real.

There's no biologically plausible reason why there would be an effect observed in African-Americans but no other race and, more specifically than that, in African-American males. In the discussion, Hooker does a bunch of handwaving about lower vitamin D levels and the like in African American boys, but there really isn't a biologically plausible mechanism to account for his observation, suggesting that it's probably spurious. There are multiple other studies, many much larger than this one, that failed to find a correlation between MMR and autism.

What [Hooker] has done, apparently, is found grist for a perfect conspiracy theory to demonize the CDC, play the race card in a truly despicable fashion, and cast fear, uncertainty, and doubt about the CDC vaccination program, knowing that most of the white antivaccine activists who support [him] hate the CDC so much that they won't notice that even Hooker's reanalysis doesn't support their belief that vaccines caused the autism in their children.

What got lost in the brouhaha over Dr. Thompson's "confession," allegations about a "cover-up" at the CDC, and threats of whistleblower lawsuits was what should have been the main point: Did collected data actually prove that the MMR vaccine produces a 340% increased risk of autism in African-American boys? The answer is no, it did not.

On 27 August 2014, Dr. Hooker's article published in the journal Translational Neurodegeneration that concluded "African American males receiving the MMR vaccine prior to 24 months of age or 36 months of age are more likely to receive an autism diagnosis" was removed from public domain due to issues of conflict of interest and the questionable validity of its methods:

The Editor and Publisher regretfully retract the article as there were undeclared competing interests on the part of the author which compromised the peer review process. Furthermore, post-publication peer review raised concerns about the validity of the methods and statistical analysis, therefore the Editors no longer have confidence in the soundness of the findings.

Tacocat, ADN, RN · Dec 12, 2018

Retroviruses insert themselves into the DNA through reverse transcription and lie dormit until it is actrivated through inflammation.

"Lie dormit"

"Dormit."

familymrl3 · Dec 12, 2018

For a thorough analysis of the flaws and misinformation associated with the current CDC autism "cover-up" conspiracy theory

Dr. Thompson has stated publicly to Congressman William Posey and numerous others that himself and colleagues in the CDC Vaccine Safety Branch were ordered in a number of cases to commit scientific fraud. They were also compelled to manipulate data and destroy evidence to help hide the link between MMR and autism. In addition, the CDC refused to allow Dr. Thompson to testify in court cases that could have potentially been worth $1 trillion in compensation from Congress.

This is why the CDC and the mainstream media have maliciously conspired to bury the MMR/autism cover-up. This cover-up has been orchestrated across the entire corporate-run media complex, encompassing all outlets, including both progressive and conservative news organizations, all of which are now complicit in the continued vaccine violence being committed every day against America's children.

djmatte, ADN, MSN, RN, NP · Dec 12, 2018

Correlation doesn't prove causation and only serves your prejudices. If you want to use these standards of correlation to prove causation, you must also apply them to current research showing vaccine injuries in children are caused by inflammation and their inability to detoxify? Current research has shown that up to 82% of children with autism test positive for the XMRV retrovirus. Where does the retrovirus come from? Vaccines!!! (read the inserts) What do retroviruses do? Retroviruses insert themselves into the DNA through reverse transcription and lie dormit until it is actrivated through inflammation. What triggers the inflammation? Other vaccines!!! What happens after the XMRV retrovirus is activated? Brain inflammation resulting in autism spectrum disorders!!!
https://www.healthline.com/health-news/connection-between-inflammation-and-autism-052214#2

Don't talk to me about "serving prejudices". Every post you make here serves your own prejudice. You can't even come clean about your background when challenged. Nor can you actually address key rebuttals when addressed. You simply say "correlation doesn't prove..." or "well what about...". That is also multiple times you've questioned my integrity and professionalism when I am simply responding to reinforce other's statements or asked questions. It is not appreciated or appropriate.

cmefford · Dec 12, 2018

Correlation doesn't prove causation and only serves your prejudices. If you want to use these standards of correlation to prove causation, you must also apply them to current research showing vaccine injuries in children are caused by inflammation and their inability to detoxify? Current research has shown that up to 82% of children with autism test positive for the XMRV retrovirus. Where does the retrovirus come from? Vaccines!!! (read the inserts) What do retroviruses do? Retroviruses insert themselves into the DNA through reverse transcription and lie dormit until it is actrivated through inflammation. What triggers the inflammation? Other vaccines!!! What happens after the XMRV retrovirus is activated? Brain inflammation resulting in autism spectrum disorders!!!
https://www.healthline.com/health-news/connection-between-inflammation-and-autism-052214#2

PCR and serology find no association between xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus (XMRV) and autism | Molecular Autism | Full Text

Xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus (XMRV) is a retrovirus implicated in prostate cancer and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Press releases have suggested that it could contribute to autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In this study we used two PCR assays and one antibody assay to screen 25 blood samples from autistic children born to mothers with CFS and from 20 mixed controls including family members of the children assayed, people with fibromyalgia and people with chronic Lyme disease. Using a real-time PCR assay, we screened an additional 48 South Carolina autism disorder samples, 96 Italian ASD samples, 61 South Carolina ASD samples and 184 healthy controls. Despite having the ability to detect low copy number XMRV DNA in a large background of cellular DNA, none of the PCR assays found any evidence of XMRV infection in blood cells from patients or controls. Further, no anti-XMRV antibodies were detected, ruling out possible low level or abortive infections in blood or in other reservoirs. These results imply that XMRV is not associated with autism.

elkpark · Dec 12, 2018

A bad day for antivaccinationists: A possible retraction, and the "CDC whistleblower" William W. Thompson issues a statement | ScienceBlogs

elkpark · Dec 12, 2018

Dr. Thompson has stated publicly to Congressman William Posey and numerous others that himself and colleagues in the CDC Vaccine Safety Branch were ordered in a number of cases to commit scientific fraud. They were also compelled to manipulate data and destroy evidence to help hide the link between MMR and autism. In addition, the CDC refused to allow Dr. Thompson to testify in court cases that could have potentially been worth $1 trillion in compensation from Congress.
This is why the CDC and the mainstream media have maliciously conspired to bury the MMR/autism cover-up. This cover-up has been orchestrated across the entire corporate-run media complex, encompassing all outlets, including both progressive and conservative news organizations, all of which are now complicit in the continued vaccine violence being committed every day against America's children.

Please provide some actual documentation of this. You know, an actual source.

angel0309, ADN, RN · Dec 12, 2018

Beyond the ridiculousness of the "story" itself, can we just talk about how deep our hatred for differently abled people goes that we believe that autism "ruins" children's lives?