Giuseppe Vetrugno risk manager and forensic pathologist, Michela Cicconi forensic pathologist and trainee in public health, Federica Foti trainee in forensic medicine, Angelico Spagnolo forensic pathologist, Fabio De-Giorgio forensic pathologist
Vetrugno G, Cicconi M, Foti F, Spagnolo A, De-Giorgio F.
Compulsory vaccination would exacerbate resistance
BMJ 2019; 366 :l4464
doi:10.1136/bmj.l4464
Re: Compulsory vaccination would exacerbate resistance
Compulsory vaccination may seem to be a way of enacting the desire of most if not all epidemiologists. It can be understood that this aim is directed at keeping children free from disease and the associated adversities. This is supported by the history of vaccination which shows that millions of children have been protected by the compliance of their parents.
Yes, let us not forget that infant vaccination is imposed by parents in the belief that they are acting responsibly on behalf of their incapacitous children. Fortunately, this is the outcome of this disease prevention protocol for all but a few.
But, what about the few? My wife and I were responsible for our five month old daughter having her first DPT vaccination in 1960. I mention the date purely because at that time the pertussis element was administered as a whole-cell vaccine. Within a very short time of vaccination she relapsed into encephalitis. As is often the case for this triggering response of the immunity system, she recovered fairly quickly and apparently without any obvious signs of injury.
When she returned to the clinic for the second dose, the doctor who gave the previous administration was informed of what had happened. She considered this information and said that she would only give our daughter a half dose. Once again after a short time she once again relapsed into encephalitis. This time the condition was much worse and her screams were so intense that her body was covered in petechial haemorrhages.
Even after such an insult as that, she seemed to recover but that was an illusion. By the time she was 18 months old there were signs that she was different to her contemporaries. At the age of three and with this difference having exacerbated to an extent that it was clear that her condition needed investigation by a paediatric consultant.
This was done and after two sessions of examination and observation, it was his opinion that she had suffered brain damage from the encephalitis; significantly that the second vaccination may have done the real damage after the body had give its warning after the first. It should be noted that the doctor who did this assessment was a professor of paediatrics at a well-regarded children’s hospital in the north of England.
From my own research into this situation, it seemed that what happened was that the parts of the brain that were damaged included some of those which are known to be affected in classical autism. It eventually became obvious that the result of this adverse reaction to the DPT vaccination had resulted in autism spectrum disorder. Later, in 1980 our daughter was given the maximum award under the Vaccine Damage Payments Act 1979.
Arising from this there are several issues that should be examined. Firstly, why was the vaccinating doctor not aware of the paper published in the BMJ in 1958 in which Dr Berg clearly gave the advice that if a child responded badly to the first dose of the DPT vaccination, it should not be given any further does. [J. M. Berg, M.B., B.Ch., M.Sc. Neurological Complications of Pertussis Immunization. BMJ 5.7.1958.]
Secondly, what is the response of those who advocate compulsory vaccination, to the cry of the parents who blame themselves for the disablement and adversity that accompanies their child for the rest of its life? We are still living with that blame almost 60 years later; and every day we see the evidence in all of its stark reality.
Thirdly, societies’ response to this life-long burden is an award that is now a £120,000, one-off payment. A sum which is admittedly not offered by the government as compensation but merely as a sop to make believe that it is a good and needful acknowledgement of the failure of the system for just a handful of those who have fallen by the wayside as a result.
If compulsory vaccination is to be implemented, then I suggest that those who will be responsible will bear in mind what has been written here.
Competing interests: No competing interests