MMR Dilemma

[aaronsmummy]

DS2 has autism and I have had the appointment through for his 2nd MMR jab which I am dithering about. DD is overdue her 1st MMR jab, I am just so unsure as to what to do. I know there is supposed to be nothing to indicate that the MMR jab has anything to do with Autism but I can't take the risk with my children. Does anyone have any useful advice?

the only thing i can say is go with your gut feeling, we had single vaccinations for ds and he is autistic as we were scared in case they made him regress, we havent bothered about mmr booster.

I had the same dilemma.

i have decided that now we are pretty sure DS has definatly got ASD there probably isn't much more the MMR can do so i will allow him to have it.
it will be 4 years late, but at least i can know for sure that it wasn't the jab that has caused anything. i am intending to get the consultant to do an assesment of him prior to the jab and then if he deteriorated again i shall be sueing everyone i can think of.

As for DD i will be doing the same, waiting until we are absolutly certain there is nothing of concern and getting that officially recognised.

I have spoken to many many Dr's about this and i have had a blanket answer from some that i really would trust with my childrens life, and they all say that the risk is minute and that they have vaccinated their own children.

BUT having 1 child with with autism makes the risks seem all the more real doesn't it.
what my head says is one thing, doing it is a bit different

Socci she is 16 months and not in daycare. I think waiting may be the answer.

As far as ds2 is concerned he is actually regressing now in some areas so not sure whether mmr could make it worse or if nothing would iykwim.

I think if you have one child with autism there is a greater risk of having another with problems or am i wrong?

My DS prob. has AS (about to be assessed) and my DD1 maybe has mild AS (not diagnosed) whereas DD2 has no problems. Looking back I can see both DS and DD1 had problems as babies BEFORE they had the MMR so I don't worry about this being the cause. DS was very, very dribbly with mouth usually open - if he fell he would catch his tongue between his teeth and cut it. DD1 only slept for one hour at a time, night and day! She also absolutely hated being in her car seat or buggy - I often got served first in shops cos of the screaming!

sorry i don't have any useful advice but my friend is convinced the MMR caused her sons autism, therfor i delayed my ds and dd first MMR till they were 2, i certainly knew they didn't have autism and ds got his booster at 5 because i had delayed the first one, dd will also be 5 when she gets her booster.

Hi, No one can make this decision for you as it is a very personal one. I can tell you from my own experience that I believe the MMR caused my sons autism and bowel disorder and my younger son to have mild ASD (not diagnosed). My son was part of Dr Andrew Wakefields study. He was the first person to take our concerns seriously and after my son having a colonoscopy and blood tests it was discovered that he has measles virus in his bowel which is of Vaccine strain not wild and this has caused a bowel condition which basically means he had no bowel control up until now age 16. He still gets constipated but it is much better after years of steroids. It is the link between the bowel and and brain (leaky gut) that is thought to cause atypical autism. It is far too lengthy to go into, but I would say do lots of research. Look into why Japan withdrew it. Why did our government withdraw certain batches of the MMR in 1992? If you get lots of info for and against you can then make an informed decision. Try looking on the JABS website. I agree with what others have posted though. If I had another child now, I would wait until that child was at least 4 years old and I would give the jabs separately. However, that is only what I would do and it is thankfully a decision I will never have to make again. It is important to immunise and I would never tell anyone not to, but it should be done safely. Hope that helps!

Wakefield's latest is available via Autism one- theres a powerpoint presentation that can be downloaded.

Shar- did you have to fly to the States to get the measles virus stuff investigated (bloody disgrace if you did).

There's a new book out by Richard lathe- Autism the Brain and the environment, which kind of summarises current biomed research. He doesn't talk much aboout the MMR - but he does say that it's reasonable to suggest that approx 5% of cases are MMR triggered- which ties in with figures of 7% etc that I've seen elsewhere. Lathe developed a vaccine himself (the rabies jab) so he's not anti vax.

MMR is still a huge debate but each parent has to make an informed decision - neither of my children are autistic but we have a strong family history of Epilepsy and so we have choosen not to go with the combined MMR. We have and are paying for the single vaccines for peace of mind. I've read all the literature both for and against and I still find myself sitting on the fence.