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Do children who become autistic consult more often after MMR vaccination?
S DeWilde1, I M Carey, N Richards
1Department of General Practice and Primary Care, George's Hospital Medical School, London SW17 0RE.
Insights
No increased GP visits were observed in children diagnosed with autism after receiving the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine. This suggests the MMR vaccine is unlikely to cause dramatic behavioral changes linked to autism.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Health
- Vaccinology
- Developmental Neuroscience
Background:
- Concerns exist regarding a potential link between the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine and autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
- Previous reports suggested a temporal association between MMR vaccination and behavioral decline in children later diagnosed with ASD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if children subsequently diagnosed with autism exhibit increased general practitioner (GP) consultations post-MMR vaccination.
- To assess the association between MMR vaccination and behavioral changes reflected in healthcare utilization.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the Doctor's Independent Network database for retrospective analysis.
- Compared consultation rates in the six months following MMR vaccination between children later diagnosed with autism and control groups.
Main Results:
- No significant difference in GP consultation frequency was found between the autism group and controls in the six months after MMR vaccination.
- The study found no evidence to support increased healthcare-seeking behavior related to behavioral decline post-MMR vaccination in children with autism.
Conclusions:
- The findings do not support a hypothesis that MMR vaccination leads to a dramatic behavioral decline reflected in GP consultations.
- The temporal association between MMR vaccination and autism diagnosis does not appear to be linked to increased general practitioner visits for behavioral issues.
Abstract:
A close temporal association has been reported between the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccination and dramatic behavioural decline in children subsequently diagnosed as autistic. We hypothesised that such a decline would be reflected in increased consultations with the child's general practitioner. The Doctor's Independent Network database was used to examine whether children subsequently diagnosed as autistic consulted more frequently than controls after MMR vaccination. No difference in consulting behaviour was seen in the six months post MMR. Any dramatic effect of MMR on behaviour seems unlikely.