Restoring Faith-Vaccines and Autism

Vaccines are one of the most contentious issues in medicine and particularly in pediatrics. Due to the success of vaccines, the number of vaccine-preventable diseases has fallen dramatically. Second, only to clean water, vaccines have saved more lives than any other public health measure. Thankfully, you don’t hear about children dying of diphtheria as parents did in the 1920s when 15,000 children died of the disease per year. You don’t hear about death or neurologic damage from measles. On the other hand, as the number of children diagnosed with Autism (and Autism Spectrum Disorder) has risen, it has understandably received a great deal of media attention. Not surprisingly, parents are worried and they are worried about what is familiar to them. Autism, not diphtheria, is familiar to parents today. In addition, because children are receiving vaccinations around the time that Autism is being diagnosed; many claim there is a causal relationship. Numerous scientific studies have disproven this and have shown that subtle signs of Autism can be seen before vaccinations (specifically the MMR) are given.
Consider this: An infant was in the waiting room of her pediatrician’s office for her 2 month-old check-up and first set of vaccinations. While waiting, she had a grand-mal seizure and went on to be diagnosed with epilepsy. Had the seizure occurred 30 minutes later- after her vaccinations, it would have been easy to blame the vaccines! Although the exact rise and cause of Autism is not completely understood, it is clear to the majority of medical professionals, including the doctors at East Cobb Pediatrics, that Autism is not caused by vaccinations. I personally vaccinated my children as recommended by the CDC without hesitation and recommend the same to my patients. Sadly, as more and more parents choose not to vaccinate or to space out vaccines, the rise of vaccine preventable disease is inevitable. My hope is to restore your faith in vaccinations and in your pediatrician as your source of vaccine information. Please ask any of the providers you see at East Cobb Pediatrics for more information on vaccines and Autism.
Visit http://www.historyofvaccines.org/ and http://www.shotofprevention.com/ as well as http://www.cdc.gov/ and http://www.aap.org/ for more information.

By Tracy Barr MD, FAAP