Time Trends in Autism and in MMR Immunization Coverage in California

Abstract

These data do not suggest an association between MMR immunization among young children and an increase in autism occurrence.

No evidence for links between autism, MMR and measles virus

“…Secondly, regarding the risks of attenuated measles virus, no ' step-up ' increase in AD births has been detected in our study following the introduction of monovalent measles vaccines in 1968 and MMR in 1988. Our finding on MMR is consistent with other studies: five recent epidemiological investigations (Taylor et al 1999;Dales et al 2001 ;Fombonne & Chakrabarti, 2001;Kaye et al 2001;Madsen et al 2002) ; three reviews of vaccine safety (Stratton et al 1994(Stratton et al , 2001Halsey & Hyman, 2000) ; and three studies on data derived from passive surveillance systems (Peltola et al 1998;Patja et al 2000 ;Plesner et al 2000) all failed 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 Year to detect any significant association. Results from passive surveillance, vaccine safety review bodies and autistic case analyses are consistent.…”

No Evidence for A New Variant of Measles-Mumps-Rubella–Induced Autism

“…36 In the current debate about the hypothesized links between the increased rates of autism and the introduction of MMR immunization, that rates of regressive autism as reported in recent studies remain at low levels (and therefore could not have increased massively) rules out MMR-induced regressive autism as a cause of the observed increase in autism rates. Our results add to the accumulation of recent large-scale epide- miologic studies [37][38][39] (W. Chen, S. Landau, P. Sham, E. Fombonne, submitted) that all failed to support an association between MMR and autism at population level, as claimed previously. 14 Fourth, additional analysis of the subset of children with a regressive pattern of development failed to detect phenomenological differences from the other nonregressive children, a lack of difference that does not argue for separate causal mechanisms operating in these 2 groups, although, admittedly, it does not rule out this possibility.…”

Vaccination against mumps, measles, and rubella: is there a case for deepening the debate?How safe is MMR vaccine?Validity of the evidenceDealing with uncertaintyGP's response

“…Some of the studies are ecological in design; they examine trends in the development of autism with the trends in use of MMR vaccine. Recently reported studies 2 3 show that the rise in reported autism over the past decade or so bears no relation to any changes in rates of MMR vaccination, and this is consistent with other data showing no epidemiological evidence for a causal association. 4 5 Most people who have reviewed the evidence have rejected the notion that MMR might be associated with autism 6-8.…”