MMR and autism: an overview of the debate to date

The ongoing controversial debate about the measles mumps rubella (MMR) vaccine and its links to regressional autism and specific bowel disorders appears to experience 'peaks and table troughs' of public interest correlated with specific media attention at any one time. It is not the intention of this article to either refute or substantiate the ongoing controversy, as this is obviously a scientific debate, but rather to offer an overview of the studies to date in the interest of helping practitioners in the frontline to engage in informed debate with concerned parents. The conclusions from this review stem from two major studies conducted by the Institute of Medicine (IoM, 2001) in the USA, and Medical Research Council (MRC, 2001) in the UK. Both conclude that although epidemiological studies so far do not support a link between MMR and autism, nonetheless the studies have been too imprecise to rule out the prospect of the vaccination being involved in a small number of cases, and the need for further research has been pointed out.