One of the great debates in autism discussions has been between those who believe that mercury based vaccine preservatives cause or contribute to incidents of autism and those who do not subscribe to that theory. The overwhelming consensus from the scientific community has been that there is no evidence to support such a link. Notwithstanding that consensus there are still a large number of parents of autistic children ( I am not one of them ) and one journalist/author (David Kirby) who believe that there is indeed a link. A few of the parents have been very vocal. Some, if internet discussions can be believed, have gone as far as harassing and threatening those who oppose their views. At least those are the allegations advanced by some "neurodiversity" commentators some of whom are equally as hostile and rude to those who disagree with their views as the extremist few among the mercury-thimerosal advocacy groups. Now, another study by Geier & Geier (2007) apparently suggests that there is a causal connection between Thimerosal and autism. Hopefully, this study will be neither rejected nor accepted based solely on prior belief. Hopefully the scientific professionals capable of properly analyzing this study will do so and offer their commentary. Hopefully hostility and hatred between the few extremists in both the mercury-vaccine and the neurodiversity groups will stand aside in favor of reason and proper scientific assessment of this study and any further evidence relevant to this issue which might arise.
The following commentary, however, appears to indicate that the old pattern of jumping to conclusions about issues in the mercury-autism debate, based on ideological pre-disposition will, unfortunately, continue to prevail and that the world autism community will be inflicted with more needless hostility between the mercury and neurodiversity groups. The author's readiness to conclude that the study "leaves little doubt" does not suggest the kind of reasoned professional analysis that will be needed to properly interpret and assess the study.
The Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part A: Current Issues, an authoritative journal featuring original toxicological research, has published, "A Case Series of Children with Apparent Mercury Toxic Encephalopathies Manifesting with Clinical Symptoms of Regressive Autistic Disorders," by Geier and Geier (2007).
This new study leaves little doubt there is a direct causal link between mercury exposure from Thimerosal-preserved biological products (vaccines and Rho(D) products) and mercury poisoning diagnosed as an autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
Thimerosal (49.55% mercury by weight) is a highly toxic mercury compound used as a preservative in some OTC and prescription drugs, including most flu shots given to pregnant women, infants, children, adults, and the elderly.
On April 19, 2007, Dr. Larry L. Needham, Chief, Organic Analytical Toxicology Branch, CDC, announced to the US National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine that Thimerosal was among the "Chemicals Linked to ASD."
Thus, Geier and Geier (2007) provide the first clinical case-series of ASD patients that confirmed this causal role for Thimerosal-preserved drugs in patients having a regressive ASD diagnosis.
The Geiers describe a case-series of eight patients who had:
-- a regressive ASD diagnosis,
-- elevated levels of androgens,
-- excreted significant amounts of mercury after a chelation challenge,
-- biochemical evidence of decreased function in their glutathione pathways,
-- no known significant mercury exposures except from Thimerosal-preserved vaccines and Rho(D)-immune globulin preparations, and
-- alternative causes for their regressive ASDs ruled out.
This clinical study also found a significant dose-response relationship between the severity of the ASD symptoms and the total mercury dose these children received from Thimerosal-preserved drugs.
Based on differential diagnosis, these patients were exposed to significant mercury amounts from Thimerosal-preserved biologic drugs during their fetal and neonatal development as well as between 12 and 24 months of age. Thus, these initially normally developing children suffered mercury toxic encephalopathies that manifested with clinical symptoms consistent with their regressive ASD diagnosis.
Hence, mercury poisoning should be considered as a cause for those children exhibiting the symptoms of an ASD in any differential diagnosis designed to assess underlying causes.
Today, any parent or other healthcare provider can easily confirm whether, or not, a non-chelated autistic child is mercury poisoned by having urinary porphyrin profile analysis (UPPA) testing run at LabCorp (Test#120980) or Laboratoire Philippe Auguste (Urine Porphyrin Profile).
For additional information on UPPA testing for mercury poisoning, please visit the "UPPA" page on CoMeD's web site, www.Mercury-freeDrugs.org.
Dr. King
www.dr-king.com
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=69427
5 comments:
I wouldn't trust much Geier & Geier. I've done a superficial PubMed study on the subject and my impression is that these two authors keep reporting findings that remain unconfirmed by anybody else over the years. Recently, they reported a decline in the number of newly diagnosed neurodevelopmental disorders after removal of thimerosal from vaccines (Geier & Geier, An assessment of downward trends in neurodevelopmental disorders in the United States following removal of Thimerosal from childhood vaccines, Med. Sci. Monit. 2006). Anybody else to have seen such a thing?
Let me return to the study cited by you. After mercury is contained in fragile old thermometers, batteries and God knows what other objects of everyday use, the authors' claim that the patients had "no known significant mercury exposure except from Thimerosal-containing vaccines" doesn't seem to be of much value. Also, after the etiology of pervasive developmental disorders is largely unknown, how could the patients have "alternate causes for their regressive ASDs ruled out"? I also wonder why Geier & Geier measure mercury intoxication by chelating and extracting mercury, while other researchers measure it directly by analysing the patients' hair, blood and urine. To me, this is bad science. Not that I approve putting mercury in the vaccines.
Maya wonders "why Geier & Geier measure mercury intoxication by chelating and extracting mercury, while other researchers measure it directly by analysing the patients' hair, blood and urine."
The researchers who look for mercury in blood, hair and urine are less likely to find a sizable amount there, because some forms of mercury do not linger in the blood for long. For example, ethylmercury is aquaphobic and clears the blood relatively quickly, only to be sequestered away in fatty tissues and organs. See study by Thomas Burbacher in EHP ( http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2005/7712/abstract.html ).
Also see: http://www.ehponline.org/press/042105.html
Maya wonders "why Geier & Geier measure mercury intoxication by chelating and extracting mercury, while other researchers measure it directly by analysing the patients' hair, blood and urine."
The researchers who look for mercury in blood, hair and urine are less likely to find a sizable amount there, because some forms of mercury do not linger in the blood for long. For example, ethylmercury is aquaphobic and clears the blood relatively quickly, only to be sequestered away in fatty tissues and organs. See study by Thomas Burbacher in EHP ( http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2005/7712/abstract.html ).
Also see: http://www.ehponline.org/press/042105.html
Maya wonders "why Geier & Geier measure mercury intoxication by chelating and extracting mercury, while other researchers measure it directly by analysing the patients' hair, blood and urine."
The researchers who look for mercury in blood, hair and urine are less likely to find a sizable amount there, because some forms of mercury do not linger in the blood for long. For example, ethylmercury is aquaphobic and clears the blood relatively quickly, only to be sequestered away in fatty tissues and organs. See study by Thomas Burbacher in EHP ( http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2005/7712/abstract.html ).
Also see: http://www.ehponline.org/press/042105.html
I recommend for reading Arthur Allen's article "Thimerosal on Trial" at http://www.slate.com/id/2166939/ - it gives interesting details about the Geiers' work and work ethics.
A recent study using chelation to assess the body burden of heavy metals in autistic and control children fails to find a link (Soden S.E. et al., 24-hour provoked urine excretion test for heavy metals in children with autism and typically developing controls, a pilot study; Clin. Toxicol. (Phila), 2007, 45: 476-481).
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