- Google News - Vaccines don't cause autism, court finds. Measles resurgence in France in 2008, a preliminary report. Since the beginning of 2008, France has been experiencing a resurgence of measles.
It started in a religious traditionalist group with low coverage and secondarily spread to the general population. This situation is the consequence of the insufficient vaccine coverage (less than 90 % at 24 months of age) which had led to the accumulation of susceptibles over the last years. More than 550 cases have been notified in 2008, the vast majority being unvaccinated. One measles-related death has occurred early 2009. Efforts to enhance communication to the general public and the health professionals on measles vaccination and control measures around cases are ongoing.
IntroductionSince the beginning of 2008, France has been facing an increase of measles incidence. Outbreak descriptionThe ongoing outbreak began in spring 2008 with several clusters. Figure 1. Figure 2. The median age of the 579 cases reported in 2008 was 12 years (range: 0-56 years). Table. Figure 3. References 1. Bad Science » The media’s MMR hoax. This is an extract from my new book “Bad Science“, in the Guardian today.
It’s out on Monday: my recommendation is that you buy it, and give it to someone who disagrees with you. Ben Goldacre The Guardian Saturday August 30 2008 Dr Andrew Wakefield is in front of the General Medical Council on charges of serious professional misconduct, his paper on 12 children with autism and bowel problems is described as “debunked” – although it never supported the conclusions ascribed to it – and journalists have convinced themselves that his £435,643 fee from legal aid proves that his research was flawed. I will now defend the heretic Dr Andrew Wakefield. The media are fingering the wrong man, and they know who should really take the blame: in MMR, journalists and editors have constructed their greatest hoax to date, and finally demonstrated that they can pose a serious risk to public health. Bad Science » LBC, MMR, Jeni Barnett, an Early Day Motion, the Times, and, er, a bit of Stephen Fry…
I thought since a few days have passed that I should let you know what’s happening with the slightly ridiculous LBC situation.
If you skip to the bottom you will find a discussion on some mischievous activism which I think has great potential. Since LBC unwisely threw their legal weight around to prevent you from being able to freely experience and ponder that astonishing 44 minute tirade against MMR, the inevitable has happened. The audio has been posted on a huge number of websites around the world, over 120 blogs so far are linking to the story, and more importantly, hundreds of thousands of people are talking and reading about the ignorance that Jeni Barnett exemplified in that worrying broadcast. It has been covered in the Times, and an Early Day Motion is being set down in parliament.
The blogs covering the story are all listed below but a few really stand out. Measles is not a trivial infection for everyone who gets it. I think it is reasonable to find this frustrating. Anyway.