How Fraud Underlies Anti-Vaccine Claims

Discussions occasionally mention that the research has been "discredited," but that description is in fact a massive understatement. In 1998, a British surgeon, Dr. Andrew Wakefield, published a paper in The Lancet with 12 co-authors, reporting that the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine was associated with "regressive autism" and colitis in 12 children. The paper ignited and propelled anti-vaccine campaigns throughout the world. A journalist, Brian Deer, began investigating these children's medical records and found that the paper's data were largely fabricated. Of the 11 children reported as having colitis, only three did, according to the medical records. Wakefield claimed that all 12 children were "previously normal," while in fact five had developmental problems before receiving the vaccine. Of the nine with regressive autism, three had no autism at all. Of the eight children who reportedly developed symptoms only days after receiving the vaccine -- which would be important in convincing a court that the vaccine was to blame -- six took much longer, and for two it is not clear. While Wakefield claimed six of the 12 children had all three features -- autism, colitis, and development of symptoms days after the vaccination, in fact, none of them did. It turns out that in 1994, a British-based anti-vaccine group, JABS, claimed that the MMR vaccine causes brain damage and other problems, and hired a lawyer, Richard Barr, who then retained Wakefield, a surgeon. B...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news