According to the results of a new review published in the February 15 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases there is no link between childhood vaccinations and autism. This
is contradictory to the findings reported by a study a decade ago which linked the MMR vaccine to autism.

Senior author Paul A. Offit, MD, chief of infectious diseases, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania said, "Vaccines don't cause autism - 20 studies now
show no link between vaccines and autism. I think that many people are reassured by these studies, although there are still a group of parents who hold that vaccines
cause autism, much as some people hold a religious belief. To those people, it really doesn't matter how many studies you do, it's not going to change their minds."

Childhood vaccines have been held responsible for autism by many parents and with the result they refrain from getting their children vaccinated. There are three
hypotheses offered about the vaccines link to autism.

Bryan H. King, MD, co-chair, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Autism and Intellectual Disabilities Committee commented on the suspected links
between vaccines and autism. "The first theory concerned the Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR) vaccine; the second, that it wasn't the MMR vaccine specifically but a
mercury-containing preservative, thimerosal; and the third, that the simultaneous administration of many vaccines is just too much for a young child's immune system."

All the three hypotheses have been refuted by experts and numerous studies spread over different countries have shown there to be no connection between the vaccines
and autism and any association was coincidental as the age when the vaccine is given and when autism symptoms first become apparent are the same.

Dr. King, professor and vice chair of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and director of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at University of Washington and Seattle
Children's Hospital said, "While rates of immunization have been constant or declined, the incidence of autism has increased, and the rate of autism in vaccinated and
unvaccinated children is the same. Neither the timing of onset, nor the severity of autism, differ whether or when a child gets immunized."

The review authors said further research on the biological basis of autism was called for to prove or refute alternative and more plausible hypotheses. Experts feel
choosing not to vaccinate your child out of autism fears could lead to many risks with some being fatal.

"We've already seen the outcomes of choosing not to comply - over the last 10 years or so, we've had outbreaks of pertussis among a relatively unvaccinated population
of children," Dr. Offit said. "We had a measles outbreak in this country that was bigger than anything we've had in a decade. Now we have a cluster of cases of
Haemophilus Influenzae meningitis where 3 parents chose not to have their child vaccinated; all 3 children got meningitis, and all 3 of them died."

The answer would perhaps lie in people and the healthcare community being educated to dispel unfounded fears of vaccinations and prevent further disease resurgence
among children whose parents have refused vaccination based on unfounded fears.

"Focusing our precious research time and talent on questions that have been asked and answered not only contributes to ongoing confusion - for example, about whether
or not to be immunized - but also will delay us from finding real answers to this critical problem," Dr. King concluded. "Parents and clinicians should have candid
discussions about the risks and benefits of vaccination including the avoidance of potentially catastrophic diseases. It will be hard not to mention autism in this context, as it may give the impression that doctors are trying to hide something, and parents should feel empowered to ask these and any other questions of their clinicians, but on the other hand, constantly linking autism and vaccines in the same sentence may continue to suggest that a relationship exists when there is no evidence to support it."