MMR & Autism

[YC]

Hi

I'm a concerned abt the relation bet. MMR and autism. I understand that there's no firm conclusion that it's true, but I'm considering getting them done seperately for my baby. I know that they do offer them here. I'm wondering what the gap period is for each jab? Anyone has any idea?

Thanks

[mmr]

The talked about link between MMR vaccination and autism is based on one very small study which has since been disproven by the medical profession and was blown completely out of proportion by the media.

Perhaps you have already done so but I suggest you do some research of your own and talk to your doctor/paediatrician and then make your decision.

If you are still concerned I didn't think that the option of having the measles, mumps and rubella vaccinations separately was available in Singapore but it is about 2 years since my child had her MMR vaccination here.

[Rosie]

I think you're advised to leave one month between jabs, but best to check with your paediatrician.

It's quite easy to get separate measles and rubella vaccinations, but mumps is hard to come by.  I finally got my son vaccinated against mumps at the Japan Green Clinic in the Paragon, but they don't always have the vaccination available.  The other ones were done by our usual dr at the Kiddies Clinic.

[kflynn]

We did a great deal of research when our baby was due for her shots.  In the end, we decided to take out her rubella shots altogether because although they are given at infancy, there is no long-lasting protection and as a teenager or adult she benefits much more getting the vaccine then.

In fact, we made our own schedule for vaccines - waiting until her immune systen had developed before testing them.  We split all of her shots and her first one was after she was 8 mths old.  

In our case, our daughter was stronger with a far better developed immune system to deal with all the little things that babies get.

I would be happy to share any more info with you if you wish.

However, look on the internet for info - there is a ton of it to consider for your own child.

[Rubella]

Except when a pregnant woman contract rubella - the unborn baby can suffer deafness as well as brain, heart and liver disease.  If  all children are immunised against rubella we can help to prevent the spread of rubella to all.  Something to think about anyway.

Granted, rubella is a relatively minor illness for a child and not as dangerous as ordinary measles.

[Useless vac]

I've never had MMR done on myself. Had mumps when I was about 10. No big deal, you get a badly swollen cheek for about two weeks, during which you're pampered like crazy by everyone around you. Then you get life immnuity.

Rubella - minor stuff, actually a plus if a girl-child contracts rubella as it provides life-long antibodies, so no need for revaccination in the future and no worries during pregnancy.

Measels is trickier as it is quite common and can lead to complications. Fortunately, my bout of measles left me intact, but its probably a good idea to get vaccinated after the 15th month of life.

[is this useful?]

Have a look on PubMed  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi

it's free but you won't be able to get the journals, just the abstracts. In particular, this may be of interest.

A population-based study of measles, mumps, and rubella vaccination and autism.Madsen KM, Hviid A, Vestergaard M, Schendel D, Wohlfahrt J, Thorsen P, Olsen J, Melbye M.

Danish Epidemiology Science Center, Department of Epidemiology and Social Medicine, Arhus, Denmark. kmm@dadlnet.dk

BACKGROUND: It has been suggested that vaccination against measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) is a cause of autism. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of all children born in Denmark from January 1991 through December 1998. The cohort was selected on the basis of data from the Danish Civil Registration System, which assigns a unique identification number to every live-born infant and new resident in Denmark. MMR-vaccination status was obtained from the Danish National Board of Health. Information on the children's autism status was obtained from the Danish Psychiatric Central Register, which contains information on all diagnoses received by patients in psychiatric hospitals and outpatient clinics in Denmark. We obtained information on potential confounders from the Danish Medical Birth Registry, the National Hospital Registry, and Statistics Denmark. RESULTS: Of the 537,303 children in the cohort (representing 2,129,864 person-years), 440,655 (82.0 percent) had received the MMR vaccine. We identified 316 children with a diagnosis of autistic disorder and 422 with a diagnosis of other autistic-spectrum disorders. After adjustment for potential confounders, the relative risk of autistic disorder in the group of vaccinated children, as compared with the unvaccinated group, was 0.92 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.68 to 1.24), and the relative risk of another autistic-spectrum disorder was 0.83 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.65 to 1.07). There was no association between the age at the time of vaccination, the time since vaccination, or the date of vaccination and the development of autistic disorder. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides strong evidence against the hypothesis that MMR vaccination causes autism. Copyright 2002 Massachusetts Medical Society

[Consider]

Please don't leave the measles vaccination as long as 8 months. My sister had contracted measles, had complications and was left mentally retarded at that age. She was a fully healthy baby, you cannot tell how the immune system will cope. She is the oldest so had no frequent contact with other children but got it anyway.
The bigger the pool of unvaccinated babies the more likely it is that your darling will encounter it. This concern about MMR is increasing that pool. Whatever vaccine you choose, please do it.

[Consider]

Sorry, I should have looked first. I note now that MMR is given in the UK at 12months. This would not have helped my sister. I don't know if it is inadvisable to get the measles vaccine earlier.  By the way she was fully breastfed. What would help your young babies is if all their older siblings were immunised. Please don't let this controversy lead to inaction.