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Research shows flu shots increase children's hospitalizations; no sign of efficacy in flu prevention
July 14, 12:17 PM
Flu shots in children - do they help or harm?
As reported at the Natural News site, researchers presented at the 105th International Conference of the American Thoracic Society recently in San Diego, describing a study which showed that the flu vaccine is not effective in preventing influenza-related hospitalizations in children, including children with pre-existing asthma. The researchers found that children who got the flu vaccine were significantly more at risk for hospitalization than their peers who did not get the vaccine - the opposite of what they desired for the outcome of the research to be.
Scientist Avni Joshi, M.D., of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, told the meeting, "The concerns that vaccination may be associated with asthma exacerbations have been disproved with multiple studies in the past, but the vaccine's effectiveness has not been well-established. This study was aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of the TIV (trivalent inactivated flu vaccine in children overall, as well as the children with asthma, to prevent influenza-related hospitalization."
Surprisingly, doctor Joshi then presented the results of the study, which appeared to show that the vaccine caused health problems serious enough to result in children being admitted to hospitals for care. To see if the vaccine reduced the number of hospitalizations for all children, especially those with asthma, over eight consecutive flu seasons, Dr. Joshi and the research team conducted a cohort study of 263 children. All the children had been evaluated at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota between the ages of six months to 18 years and each had exhibited laboratory-confirmed flu between 1996 to 2006. The scientists documented which of the children in this cohort sample had been vaccinated with flu shots and which had not received flu shots. The children's asthma status was also noted along with records of which children did and did not require hospitalization.
Then the research team checked the records for each child subject to see who had been vaccinated before experiencing a flu-related episode that lead to a hospitalization for that illness. The results showed that children who had received the flu vaccine had three times the risk of hospitalization, as compared to children who had not received the vaccine. For those with asthma, there was even a higher risk of hospitalization in subjects who received the influenza shot. No other measured factors, which included insurance coverage status and severity of asthma, were found to correlate with risk of hospitalization.
Dr. Joshi neglected to find fault or express much concern with the flu shot, despite the data collected in this study. "While these findings do raise questions about the efficacy of the vaccine, they do not in fact implicate it as a cause of hospitalizations," Dr. Joshi said in a statement to the media. "More studies are needed to assess not only the immunogenicity, but also the efficacy of different influenza vaccines in asthmatic subjects." It appears that this physician is so committed to an apparent success with his research that he will blatantly lie about negative results that are openly visible to the audience. With this type of attitude among prominent physicians, how can parents trust doctors to recommend and administer truly safe and effective care to their children?
The CDC?s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommend annual influenza vaccination for all children aged six months to 18 years. The National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (3rd revision) promotes annual flu vaccination of asthmatic children older than six months.
The hazards shown in published studies do not appear to concern these powerful organizations.
Meanwhile, as reported in a 2008 article at Natural News, there is a dearth of evidence to suggest that the shots work in preventing flu.
A large study reported in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews of 260,000 children between ages 23 months and six years indicated that the flu vaccine is no more effective that a placebo.
http://www.examiner.com/x-12517-Miami-Holistic-Health-Examiner~y2009m7d14-Research-shows-flu-shots-increase-childrens-hospitalizations-no-sign-of-efficacy-in-flu-prevention
July 14, 12:17 PM
Flu shots in children - do they help or harm?
As reported at the Natural News site, researchers presented at the 105th International Conference of the American Thoracic Society recently in San Diego, describing a study which showed that the flu vaccine is not effective in preventing influenza-related hospitalizations in children, including children with pre-existing asthma. The researchers found that children who got the flu vaccine were significantly more at risk for hospitalization than their peers who did not get the vaccine - the opposite of what they desired for the outcome of the research to be.
Scientist Avni Joshi, M.D., of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, told the meeting, "The concerns that vaccination may be associated with asthma exacerbations have been disproved with multiple studies in the past, but the vaccine's effectiveness has not been well-established. This study was aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of the TIV (trivalent inactivated flu vaccine in children overall, as well as the children with asthma, to prevent influenza-related hospitalization."
Surprisingly, doctor Joshi then presented the results of the study, which appeared to show that the vaccine caused health problems serious enough to result in children being admitted to hospitals for care. To see if the vaccine reduced the number of hospitalizations for all children, especially those with asthma, over eight consecutive flu seasons, Dr. Joshi and the research team conducted a cohort study of 263 children. All the children had been evaluated at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota between the ages of six months to 18 years and each had exhibited laboratory-confirmed flu between 1996 to 2006. The scientists documented which of the children in this cohort sample had been vaccinated with flu shots and which had not received flu shots. The children's asthma status was also noted along with records of which children did and did not require hospitalization.
Then the research team checked the records for each child subject to see who had been vaccinated before experiencing a flu-related episode that lead to a hospitalization for that illness. The results showed that children who had received the flu vaccine had three times the risk of hospitalization, as compared to children who had not received the vaccine. For those with asthma, there was even a higher risk of hospitalization in subjects who received the influenza shot. No other measured factors, which included insurance coverage status and severity of asthma, were found to correlate with risk of hospitalization.
Dr. Joshi neglected to find fault or express much concern with the flu shot, despite the data collected in this study. "While these findings do raise questions about the efficacy of the vaccine, they do not in fact implicate it as a cause of hospitalizations," Dr. Joshi said in a statement to the media. "More studies are needed to assess not only the immunogenicity, but also the efficacy of different influenza vaccines in asthmatic subjects." It appears that this physician is so committed to an apparent success with his research that he will blatantly lie about negative results that are openly visible to the audience. With this type of attitude among prominent physicians, how can parents trust doctors to recommend and administer truly safe and effective care to their children?
The CDC?s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommend annual influenza vaccination for all children aged six months to 18 years. The National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (3rd revision) promotes annual flu vaccination of asthmatic children older than six months.
The hazards shown in published studies do not appear to concern these powerful organizations.
Meanwhile, as reported in a 2008 article at Natural News, there is a dearth of evidence to suggest that the shots work in preventing flu.
A large study reported in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews of 260,000 children between ages 23 months and six years indicated that the flu vaccine is no more effective that a placebo.
http://www.examiner.com/x-12517-Miami-Holistic-Health-Examiner~y2009m7d14-Research-shows-flu-shots-increase-childrens-hospitalizations-no-sign-of-efficacy-in-flu-prevention
This does not make sense. A vaccine is simply a dead or weakened virus introduced to the body to activate an immediate response when the live virus is later encountered. It is simply prepping the body for invasion. How could children fare worse by having a dead virus followed by a live virus? Children who are not getting vaccines are getting subsequent infections with yearly flu's would have an equal chance of hospital admissions. Was this a double blind test to see if kids who were not vaccinated got asthma at elevated rates if they had the same infection twice? If this study is on the up and up and is not skewed in some way, then it has to be something else in the vaccine that is causing the severe illness when the virus is encountered a second time.
