Vaccines
Case closed
I’ve been off-line for awhile, attending to some other issues in life. However, it’s time for a celebration about the anti-vaccination crowd, including Jenny McCarthy. The US Vaccine Court has ruled that there is no scientific evidence linking vaccinations to autism. To quote ruling:
Petitioners' theory of vaccine-related causation is scientifically unsupportable. In the absence of a sound medical theory causally connecting William's received vaccines to his autistic condition, the undersigned cannot find the proposed sequence of cause and effect to be logical or temporally appropriate. Having failed to satisfy their burden of proof under the articulated legal standard, petitioners cannot prevail on their claim of vaccine-related causation. Read More...
Petitioners' theory of vaccine-related causation is scientifically unsupportable. In the absence of a sound medical theory causally connecting William's received vaccines to his autistic condition, the undersigned cannot find the proposed sequence of cause and effect to be logical or temporally appropriate. Having failed to satisfy their burden of proof under the articulated legal standard, petitioners cannot prevail on their claim of vaccine-related causation. Read More...
Bill Maher is a science denialist
Bill Maher, a rather liberal talk show host, has recently been joining the anti-vaccination crowd, adding his voice to the Hollywood centered vaccination denialists. He is a typical science denialist, ignoring the vast wealth of science, research and publications, to make statements, in this case about promoting pseudoscience in his dismissal of the value of vaccines. Moreover, Mr. Maher spends time denying he is a denialist, which usually is an indicator that one is a denialist.
Interestingly, Maher is usually in sync with my feelings about global warming and evolution denialists, who use pseudoscience and outright denial to "prove" that there is no global warming or evolution. Usually, skeptics or anti-denialists (one day we need to get this terminology right) are consistent, we dismiss pseudoscience outright. I have no clue why he has chosen this particular pseudoscience and quackery to support, but maybe he just thinks Jenny McCarthy knows more than real scientists. Read More...
Interestingly, Maher is usually in sync with my feelings about global warming and evolution denialists, who use pseudoscience and outright denial to "prove" that there is no global warming or evolution. Usually, skeptics or anti-denialists (one day we need to get this terminology right) are consistent, we dismiss pseudoscience outright. I have no clue why he has chosen this particular pseudoscience and quackery to support, but maybe he just thinks Jenny McCarthy knows more than real scientists. Read More...
Debunking H1N1 Vaccine Myths
The internet is a wonderful place for getting information. But it's also a disaster in finding good information. The problem is that if you read medical facts on the internet, you tend to give equal value to both scientifically supported and outright pseudoscientific statements. I read a few posts on Facebook, which seems to be the modern world's gossip center, that spouted all sorts of conspiracy theories and ridiculous myths about the H1N1 Vaccine. Read More...
Immunization–get the facts
Just when I thought that the whole anti-vaccination movement was going to be eclipsed by the whole healthcare reform debate (or myth-pushing, depending on your point of view), I still realize that there are groups who think that vaccines are not usesful. People are starting to stand up to the pseudoscience-based woo-pushing crowd: Read More...
The Jenny McCarthy Song
Without making excuses, I really try to keep this blog focused on issues that might impact the medical business world. I am, however, strongly offended by pseudoscience, the primary “authority” for most quack remedies, alternative medicine, and the anti-vaccine movement. I have previously discussed Ms. McCarthy a number of times, and without a doubt, I believe she’s a danger to healthcare. The consequences of the anti-vaccination push is evident by real science. Read More...
Swine flu–don't panic
Apr/30/09 00:02
With respect to the swine flu, I want to repeat myself, once again–Don’t Panic.
Yes, the World Health Organization revised the pandemic alert for swine flu from 4 to 5. They did this to urge vaccine manufacturers to prepare a new vaccine, to warn governments to prepare in advance, and to request that government surveillance be heightened.
This does not mean that we will be returning to the Spanish Flu epidemic of 1918, where more than 20 million people died worldwide. We are healthier, there are no major wars such as World War I, we have a better healthcare system, we have more focus from governments, and we have better treatments. Read More...
Yes, the World Health Organization revised the pandemic alert for swine flu from 4 to 5. They did this to urge vaccine manufacturers to prepare a new vaccine, to warn governments to prepare in advance, and to request that government surveillance be heightened.
This does not mean that we will be returning to the Spanish Flu epidemic of 1918, where more than 20 million people died worldwide. We are healthier, there are no major wars such as World War I, we have a better healthcare system, we have more focus from governments, and we have better treatments. Read More...
Swine flu
Apr/29/09 15:34 Filed in: Pharmaceuticals | Pseudoscience | Vaccines | Healthcare Policy | Evidence based medicine
Well, actually I’m not going to say too much about swine flu, except that my initial impression is that it’s not that much different from other types of flu in terms of severity. For example, during the 2007-2008 flu season, there were 83 pediatric mortalities in the US that resulted from influenza infections. In other words, like a lot of diseases that we think are minor, there are serious health consequences that often fly “under the radar.” There is a certain fascination with this disease because of where it started (Mexico), conspiracy theories, and for other reasons that are beyond my ability to understand. I am personally not concerned, because, as I mentioned above, the morbidity of the infection probably is similar to other types of influenza.
There are a number of bloggers who are passing along sage and sane advice. Basically, don’t panic. Wash your hands. And that’s about it for really good medical information.
Of course, the woo-meisters have weighed in with their useless advice. I won’t even begin to explain the logical and scientific fallacies of colon cleansing, but it isn’t going to either prevent or lessen the severity of swine flu. Read More...
There are a number of bloggers who are passing along sage and sane advice. Basically, don’t panic. Wash your hands. And that’s about it for really good medical information.
Of course, the woo-meisters have weighed in with their useless advice. I won’t even begin to explain the logical and scientific fallacies of colon cleansing, but it isn’t going to either prevent or lessen the severity of swine flu. Read More...
The cost of medical woo
Apr/15/09 22:45 Filed in: Pseudoscience | Pharmaceuticals | Quackery | Vaccines | Evidence based medicine
My blog entries wander between three broad topics: medical woo (pseudoscience, science denialism, vaccine denialism, and alternative medicine), market opportunities for medical products and healthcare policy. And one discussion about my beloved Syracuse Orange. My three broad interests in the medical arena are interrelated in such a fashion that medical companies (both pharmaceutical and medical devices) need to prepare strategic plans that maximize their success despite some difficult market forces.
First, let’s talk about the whole area of medical woo. The anti-vaccine movement (which I will continue to label as vaccine denialism), if it continues to gain traction in social consciousness, will require more investment in studies that continue to confirm that there is no link between vaccines and autism (OK, yes the proper scientific method would force me to say that there is a possibility that a link could be found, but after 100’s of clinical papers, I’m firmly on the side that this issue has been decided). If this movement becomes problematic, we might be dealing with infectious disease epidemics unseen in a generation. Can hospitals and clinics deal with these diseases? How large are the infectious disease wards in hospitals? How many infectious disease specialists are there? And what kinds of medical products will need to be available to treat these diseases? Read More...
First, let’s talk about the whole area of medical woo. The anti-vaccine movement (which I will continue to label as vaccine denialism), if it continues to gain traction in social consciousness, will require more investment in studies that continue to confirm that there is no link between vaccines and autism (OK, yes the proper scientific method would force me to say that there is a possibility that a link could be found, but after 100’s of clinical papers, I’m firmly on the side that this issue has been decided). If this movement becomes problematic, we might be dealing with infectious disease epidemics unseen in a generation. Can hospitals and clinics deal with these diseases? How large are the infectious disease wards in hospitals? How many infectious disease specialists are there? And what kinds of medical products will need to be available to treat these diseases? Read More...
Jenny says....
If you read my blog, you know I don’t have much respect for the anti-vaccination movement, and I have contempt for Jenny McCarthy, JB Handley, Andrew Wakefield, Generation Rescue and others for the damage they have done to health care. One of my favorite blogs to read is Science Based Medicine, which has several physicians editors (and guest editors) who discuss medicine from a scientific perspective. I share their point-of-view on medicine, and since my background is from the industry perspective, I cannot obviate the need for good scientific reasoning for product development. In Welcome back, my friends, to the show that never ends: The Jenny and Jim antivaccine propaganda tour has begun, David Gorski, MD, tears apart, in about as civil a manner as he can, Jenny’s recent interview. Read More...
The anti-Jenny blogosphere
Medical and science blogs are aghast at Jenny McCarthy’s comments that I reviewed earlier today. Let me list some of the more choice comments. Read More...
Jenny McCarthy again!
Why is anyone listening to Jenny McCarthy? She just published a new books continuing her unscientific and unsupported rants about how vaccines cause autism. As of today, there are still no links between the two, but because she was a Playboy Playmate of the Year, she has a soapbox to promote her views. Read More...
The anti-vaccination tragedy
Mar/31/09 10:07 Filed in: Vaccines | Healthcare Policy | Pseudoscience | Pharmaceuticals | Evidence based medicine
I have written about the anti-vaccination movement several times recently, yet every day, I read another article or another comment somewhere that reminds me of this situation. Today, I came across a recently published article in The Lancet, one of the most respected peer-reviewed medical journals, which reinforced one of the consequences of the anti-vaccination movement. The article, Measles in Europe: an epidemiological assessment, states that there were 12,232 cases of measles in Europe during 2006 and 2007. Most cases were unvaccinated or improperly vaccinated children. Read More...
Vaccines, once again and a bit irreverent
As I’ve discussed previously, I find the anti-vaccine movement, linking cases of autism to pediatric vaccinations, to be based on pseudoscientific principles. There are several individuals that have pushed this quackery, but one of the more visible is Jenny McCarthy, ex-Playboy Playmate of the Year (no, I’m not going to link to it), bad actress, and failed game-show host. I am flabbergasted that anyone would listen to this woman, a scientific illiterate, about anything outside of how to model and possibly how to choose bad movies. That parents are making decisions about vaccinating their children based on her bogus beliefs is beyond my simple understanding of the world.
There are always consequences to every action, and there are many by delaying or refusing vaccinations. The Jenny McCarthy Body Count is a website that lists every vaccine-preventable case and death that has occurred since Jenny made public her belief that vaccines caused autism in her son (which many believe is a misdiagnosis) in June 2007. Since then, there have been 720 preventable cases and 142 preventable deaths (as of today). As the website says, she’s not responsible for everyone one of these cases or deaths. But if she convinces just one person to not adhere to a vaccine schedule for their children, then it’s one too many.
Read More...
There are always consequences to every action, and there are many by delaying or refusing vaccinations. The Jenny McCarthy Body Count is a website that lists every vaccine-preventable case and death that has occurred since Jenny made public her belief that vaccines caused autism in her son (which many believe is a misdiagnosis) in June 2007. Since then, there have been 720 preventable cases and 142 preventable deaths (as of today). As the website says, she’s not responsible for everyone one of these cases or deaths. But if she convinces just one person to not adhere to a vaccine schedule for their children, then it’s one too many.
Read More...
Vaccines...Part II
If you read what I have written so far, I am firmly against pseudoscience influencing healthcare policy. Anti-vaccinationists, who have harmed human beings with their pseudoscientific assertion that MMR vaccines cause autism, are now on the run as I’ve stated earlier. Read More...
Vaccines...who are you going to believe?
In one corner, we have Jenny McCarthy, former Playboy Playmate of the Year, Dr. Andrew Wakefield, and pseudoscience with an extra dose of quackery. In the other corner, we have the Centers for Disease Control, the Institute of Medicine for the National Academy of Sciences, UK’s National Health Service, and the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (what is commonly called the Vaccine Court). The battle is over MMR vaccine, a mixture of three live attenuated viruses administered by injection for immunization against measles, mumps and rubella (formerly known as German measles).
Let’s take a close look at the participants. First, Jenny McCarthy, whose extensive medical and science education includes....not much. In 2005, she announced that her child was diagnosed with autism, a diagnosis about which there is some doubt. McCarthy believes that vaccines caused her son’s autism, although that view is unsupported by any scientific or medical evidence. Her public appearances and statements have increased the public perception of this link, and may have led to decreased immunization rates and increased incidence of measles. McCarthy has stated that chelation therapy helped her son recover from autism. Essentially, McCarthy claims that mercury in vaccines causes autism, which has been rejected by scientific and clinical studies. In fact, the National Institute of Mental Health has concluded that autistic children will not receive any benefit to balance the risks of cognitive and emotional problems induced by the chelating agents used in this treatment. Really, she should stick to modeling and bad movies.
Dr. Andrew Wakefield is a whole different story. He, and 12 other researchers, published a paper in the British medical journal in 1998, The Lancet, which reported on 12 (yes 12) children with developmental disorders. They linked eight of these children to MMR vaccinations. The paper described several bowel symptoms and the possible link to the vaccine. He even gave a name to the syndrome, autistic enterocolitis. After publication of the paper, confidence in the MMR vaccine fell; pediatricians in the United Kingdom thought the British government was either hiding evidence of the link, or was failing to prove it. Read More...
Let’s take a close look at the participants. First, Jenny McCarthy, whose extensive medical and science education includes....not much. In 2005, she announced that her child was diagnosed with autism, a diagnosis about which there is some doubt. McCarthy believes that vaccines caused her son’s autism, although that view is unsupported by any scientific or medical evidence. Her public appearances and statements have increased the public perception of this link, and may have led to decreased immunization rates and increased incidence of measles. McCarthy has stated that chelation therapy helped her son recover from autism. Essentially, McCarthy claims that mercury in vaccines causes autism, which has been rejected by scientific and clinical studies. In fact, the National Institute of Mental Health has concluded that autistic children will not receive any benefit to balance the risks of cognitive and emotional problems induced by the chelating agents used in this treatment. Really, she should stick to modeling and bad movies.
Dr. Andrew Wakefield is a whole different story. He, and 12 other researchers, published a paper in the British medical journal in 1998, The Lancet, which reported on 12 (yes 12) children with developmental disorders. They linked eight of these children to MMR vaccinations. The paper described several bowel symptoms and the possible link to the vaccine. He even gave a name to the syndrome, autistic enterocolitis. After publication of the paper, confidence in the MMR vaccine fell; pediatricians in the United Kingdom thought the British government was either hiding evidence of the link, or was failing to prove it. Read More...