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MMR Studies Ranked: 40 possible points per study
The Measles Mumps Rubella ("MMR") is one of 11 licensed vaccines
given to American children. The list of licensed vaccines, the year they
were added to the schedule, and the doses given to children include:
Year Added
USA Schedule |
USA Mandated
Vaccines |
Doses
Given USA |
| 1940s |
Diptheria, Tetanus, Pertussis (DTP) |
5 |
| 1955 |
Inactivated Poliovirus (IPV) |
4 |
| 1971 |
Measles, Mumps, Rubella (MMR) |
2 |
| 1990 |
Haemophilus Influenzae type B (Hib) |
4 |
| 1991 |
Hepatitis B (HepB) |
3 |
| 1995 |
Varicella |
2 |
| 1998 |
Rotavirus (RV) |
3 |
| 2000 |
Pneumococcal (PCV) |
4 |
| 2004 |
Influenza |
7 |
| 2004 |
Hepatitis A (Hep A) |
2 |
| 2006 |
Meningococcal (high risk groups only) |
-- |
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Total Vaccines to US Children Under 5 |
36 |
What’s interesting to see is that the MMR is only one of eleven
vaccines given to American children, and only 2 of the 36 doses children
receive. Yet, after studies come out purportedly saying that MMR and
autism are not linked, the scientific community states, "vaccines do not
cause autism." We ask, "What about the other 34 vaccines?"
To put this another way, it is impossible for any of these studies to ask the right question.
Children receive 19 OTHER vaccines before they receive their first MMR
vaccine. How can you look at only one vaccine and conclude "Vaccines
(including the 10 shots we didn’t study) don’t cause autism"? It’s
impossible.
The reason the MMR is a focus is because of a study published in The Lancet medical journal in 1998. The study, titled Ileal-lymphoid-nodular hyperplasia, non-specific colitis, and pervasive developmental disorder in children, with the lead author Dr. Andrew Wakefield, reached the following conclusion:
"Onset of behavioral symptoms [autism] was associated, by the
parents, with measles, mumps, and rubella vaccination [MMR] in eight of
the 12 children, with measles infection in one child, and otitis media
in another...We identified associated gastrointestinal disease and
developmental regression in a group of previously normal children, which
was generally associated in time with possible environmental triggers."
This relatively straightforward conclusion, that the MMR may in fact
be related to autism, set off a worldwide controversy and a
mini-industry of bogus scientific reports trying to refute the idea that
MMR and autism are related. You will see many of the studies below.
To try to simplify presentation, we have kept the studies in the same order we presented them in our previous section, The "14" Studies.
The ranking is based on our evaluation of how widely distributed and
quoted each study is. Therefore, the studies are not presented in the
order of their score.
For more detail on the first three studies, including how they were scored, please click the MORE INFO links below.
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score
1 |
"Lack of Association Between Measles Virus Vaccine and Autism with Enteropathy: A Case-Control Study"
PLoS One, Mady Hornig, Thomas Briese T, et al. (September 2008) |
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Headline:
This study is intended to refute the Wakefield study mentioned above.
However, it made one critical distinction from the Wakefield approach:
it didn’t recruit for the subset of children with autism who regressed
after MMR vaccination. That, combined with a very small sample size,
renders the results nearly meaningless. At least the study concedes that
children with autism suffer from gastrointestinal issues.
[ MORE INFO ]
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score
1 |
"No Evidence for a New Variant of Measles-Mumps-Rubella-Induced Autism"
Pediatrics, Eric Fombonne, FRCPsych (October 2001) |
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Headline:
What is it with Eric Fombonne and Pediatrics? This is an older study
(2001). Here’s a helpful critique: "What this study set out to do was
not to investigate the cause(s) of damage to specific children, but to
clear MMR of any complicity. At first sight, it succeeds in the latter,
but at closer analysis, it makes numerous unfounded assumptions that
considerably weaken the strength of its conclusions. At worst, it
demonstrates the central flaw of designing a study hoping to achieve a
desired outcome, rather than to investigate a problem. Overall verdict:
this study fails to provide any convincing evidence against an
MMR/autism link." Complete critique HERE.
From the The Cochrane Collaboration: "The number and possible impact of biases was so high that interpretation of the results was difficult."
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