The Panic Virus. A True Story of Medicine, Science By Seth Mnookin

Journalist Seth Mnookin, author of a recent book claiming there is no link between childhood vaccines and autism – The Panic Virus – remains silent in response to CHS’ 2nd April 2011 challenge [full text below] to deny that numerous US Goverment officials and agencies have confirmed that vaccinations can and do cause autistic conditions. We even cited original references with weblinks so Seth could easily check himself.

A week is long enough to answer so we are calling Mnookin our as incompetent or plain dishonest, setting out why here. It is well over time for an answer. There is and can be no adequate answer of course.

We are also calling Mnookin out as unprofessional for his personal inappropriate attacks on his website on two leading journalists and a published scientific researcher over a recently published paper reviewing the medical and scientific evidence that vaccines cause autistic conditions.

If you do have an opportunity to catch Seth in public at one of his public lectures, do trouble to ask him to answer. You can find out where he is making personal appearances, lectures, readings and TV/Radio interviews here: Mnookin: 1) Readings/Lectures - 2) TV/Radio/Web

Yet the myth that vaccines somehow cause developmental disorders lives on. ….. it has been popularized by media personalities such as Oprah Winfrey and Jenny McCarthy and legitimized by journalists …. The Panic Virus is a riveting and sometimes heart-breaking medical detective story that explores the limits of rational thought. It is the ultimate cautionary tale for our time.

If it is such a great “medical detective story” how come Mnookin did not find the information we did – which has been broadcast on nationwide US TV news channels CNN and CBS, published in judgements of the US Federal Court and found in other publicly available sources?

Self-appointed expert Mnookin with no medical or scientific research qualifications also had the front to claim on his website a recent peer reviewed and well researched journal paper is worthless. The paper is “Theoretical aspects of autism: Causes—A review” Helen V. Ratajczak Journal of Immunotoxicology, 2011; 8(1): 68–79. The study includes the statement that:-

Documented causes of autism include …….. encephalitis following vaccination.”

But Mnookin says “I haven’t had time to go through the entire study that Attkisson cites,“. So what was the source of Mnookin’s information about this peer-reviewed scientific paper? Only the rabid anti-vaccine-safety blog LeftBrainRightBrain well-known for its lack of standing to comment on anything medical or scientific and bulling, abusive, insulting and harrassing approach to anyone who does not agree with everything they claim: Anti-Child-Safety Internet Bullies & Abusers Hard At It

Exactly what flavour of moron is Mnookin?

Mnookin’s attacks are remarkable for the personal bullying and insulting approach published on his website against professional journalist and CBS news reporter Sharyl Attkisson. According to Mnookin, Attkisson is “the least responsible mainstream journalists covering vaccines and autism” and award winning author and journalist David Kirby for reporting on this published peer-reviewed study.

No Seth, look in the mirror and you like us can see the least responsible mainstream journalist.

The reports of journalists Attkisson and Kirby and the new paper of course undermine the credibility of Mnookin and his now seemingly worthless book and might hurt his sales. Mnookin’s silence in response to CHS’ challenge is also damaging. If Mnookin was such a great medical detective he should have had immediate answers to the challenge, but he clearly has not.

We posted the challenge on Mnookin’s blog [full text below] and it remains unanswered. Mnookin’s blog is found here: More embarrassing anti-vaccine reporting from CBS News’s Sharyl Attkisson March 31st, 2011:-

Seth,

We are posting this challenge on CHS today. We look forward to your reply. Journalists are meant to check their facts. [Looks like a Harvard education can be wasted in some cases.]

We challenge you to deny that:

A) the current President of Merck’s Vaccines Division, Julie Gerberding confirmed to CBS News when she was Director of the US Centres for Disease Control that: “….. if you’re predisposed with the mitochondrial disorder, it can certainly set off some damage. Some of the symptoms can be symptoms that have characteristics of autism.“ [1]

B) Autistic conditions can result from encephalopathy following vaccination. The US Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) confirmed to CBS News that of 1322 cases of vaccine injury compensation settled out of court by the US Government in secret settlements: “We have compensated cases in which children exhibited an encephalopathy, or general brain disease. Encephalopathy may be accompanied by a medical progression of an array of symptoms including autistic behavior, autism, or seizures.” [2], [3].

C) It is biologically plausible that a live virus vaccine like MMR contains live viruses one of which is scientifically accepted as causing autism. The first known cause of autism was rubella virus.

… rubella (congenital rubella syndrome) is one of the few proven causes of autism.“ Walter A. Orenstein, M.D. US as Assistant Surgeon General, Director National Immunization Program in a letter to the UK’s Chief Medical Officer 15 February 2002.

rubella virus is one of the few known causes of autism.” US Center for Disease Control.
http://www.cdc.gov/nip/vacsafe/concerns/autism/autism-mmr.htm

rubella can cause autism” The Pediatrician’s Role in the Diagnosis and Management of Autistic Spectrum Disorder in Children – PEDIATRICS Vol. 107 No. 5 May 2001
http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/pediatrics;107/5/1221

D) Autistic conditions can result from acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM) following MMR vaccination as held by the US Federal Court in the case of Bailey Banks [4].

In his conclusion, US Federal Court Special Master Abell ruled that Petitioners had proven that the MMR had directly caused a brain inflammation illness called acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM) which, in turn, had caused the autism spectrum disorder PDD-NOS in the child:

The Court found that Bailey’s ADEM was both caused-in-fact and proximately caused by his vaccination. It is well-understood that the vaccination at issue can cause ADEM, and the Court found, based upon a full reading and hearing of the pertinent facts in this case, that it did actually cause the ADEM. Furthermore, Bailey’s ADEM was severe enough to cause lasting, residual damage, and retarded his developmental progress, which fits under the generalized heading of Pervasive Developmental Delay, or PDD [an autism spectrum disorder]. The Court found that Bailey would not have suffered this delay but for the administration of the MMR vaccine, and that this chain of causation was… a proximate sequence of cause and effect leading inexorably from vaccination to Pervasive Developmental Delay.

E) Autism is not caused by genes. And what does not cause autism?

Dr Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D. the 16th and current Director of the US$30.5 billion budget National Institutes of Health [nominated by President Obama: NIH News Release 17th August 2009 ] stated in evidence to US House of Representatives Committee May 2006 when Director of the US National Human Genome Research Institute [5]:

“Recent increases in chronic diseases like diabetes, childhood asthma, obesity or autism cannot be due to major shifts in the human gene pool as those changes take much more time to occur. They must be due to changes in the environment, including diet and physical activity, which may produce disease in genetically predisposed persons.“

F) Autistic conditions affect approximately 1 in 100 US children. They affect 1 in 64 British children [1 in 40 are boys] according to a Cambridge University study [6].

“Conclusions: The prevalence estimate of known cases of ASC, using different methods of ascertainment converges around 1%. The ratio of known to unknown cases means that for every three known cases there are another two unknown cases. This has implications for planning diagnostic, social and health services.”

G) It is estimated to cost the UK Ł28 billion per annum [roughly US$42 billion]: [7]

[1] HOUSE CALL WITH DR. SANJAY GUPTA – Unraveling the Mystery of Autism; Talking With the CDC Director; Stories of Children with Autism; Aging with Autism – Aired March 29, 2008 – 08:30 ET

[2] CBS News Exclusive: Leading Dr.: Vaccines-Autism Worth Study Former Head Of NIH Says Government Too Quick To Dismiss Possible Link – WASHINGTON, May 12, 2008

[3] Vaccine Case: An Exception Or A Precedent? – First Family To Have Autism-Related Case “Conceded” Is Just One Of Thousands – CBS News By Sharyl Attkisson WASHINGTON, March 6, 2008]

[4] [Banks v. HHS (Case 02-0738V, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 254, July 20, 2007)]
http://www.uscfc.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/Abell.BANKS.02-0738V.pdf

[5] Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D. evidence to US House of Representatives Committee May 2006
http://www.genome.gov/18016846

[6] ESTIMATING AUTISM SPECTRUM PREVALENCE IN THE POPULATION: A SCHOOL BASED STUDY FROM THE UK
http://imfar.confex.com/imfar/2008/webprogram/Paper2245.html

[7] ["Economic Consequences of Autism in the UK" - London School of Economics - Study by team led by Professor Martin Knapp
http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/pressAndInformationOffice/PDF/EconomicCostsofAutism.pdf

[Executive Summary]
https://www.nece.gov.uk/nece/neceprojects.nsf/0/01771070ACD08B7680257420004F51C7/$file/Autism%20briefing.pdf