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- Title
Vaccines and Autism: A Tale of Shifting Hypotheses.
- Authors
Gerber, Jeffrey S.; Offit, Paul A.
- Abstract
Although child vaccination rates remain high, some parental concern persists that vaccines might cause autism. Three specific hypotheses have been proposed: (1) the combination measles-mumps-rubella vaccine causes autism by damaging the intestinal lining, which allows the entrance of encephalopathic proteins; (2) thimerosal, an ethylmercury-containing preservative in some vaccines, is toxic to the central nervous system; and (3) the simultaneous administration of multiple vaccines overwhelms or weakens the immune system. We will discuss the genesis of each of these theories and review the relevant epidemiological evidence.
- Subjects
AUTISM in children; VACCINATION; CHILD development deviations; MMR vaccines; PROTEINS; EPIDEMIOLOGY
- Publication
Clinical Infectious Diseases, 2009, Vol 48, Issue 4, p456
- ISSN
1058-4838
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1086/596476