Concerns about a possible link between the MMR vaccine and autism have persisted for two decades, since a controversial article published in 1998 (and later retracted) claimed that there was a direct connection.
Although subsequent studies have not linked it with autism, fear of risk has taken over parents in several countries in Europe and the US, which has caused vaccination rates to be too low in recent years. years to prevent a wave of measles outbreaks.
In the most recent study, the researchers examined data on 657,461 children. During this time, 6,517 children were diagnosed with autism.
According to the researchers report in the Annals of Internal Medicine, children who received the MMR vaccine were 7% less likely to develop autism than children who were not vaccinated.
"Parents should not be alarmed by a relationship between the vaccine and autism that does not really exist," said Anders Hviid, lead author of the study and a scientist at the Statens Serum Institut in Copenhagen, Denmark.
"The dangers of not getting vaccinated include a resurgence in measles that we are seeing today's signs in the form of outbreaks," Hviid said in a statement.
According to the study, children with autistic siblings were more than seven times more likely to be diagnosed with autism than children without this family history.
According to the study, children with autistic relatives were more than seven times more likely to be diagnosed with autism than children without this family history.
It was also found that children were four times more likely to be diagnosed with autism than girls.
And, children who did not receive childhood vaccines were 17% more likely to be diagnosed with autism than children who received the recommended vaccines.
Measles can be deadly
Measles is a highly contagious virus that can be fatal. It begins with a fever that can last a couple of days, followed by cough, runny nose and conjunctivitis. Rashes develop on the face and neck and then spread to the rest of the body. In severe cases, pneumonia and encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain, can develop.
People with measles can spread the virus for several days before and after the rash appears.
The virus can live up to two hours on surfaces where an infected person coughs or sneezes. People can get infected by breathing droplets or touching a contaminated surface and then touching their eyes, nose or mouth.
Another study concluded that a simple 5% reduction in vaccination coverage can triple measles cases in a city.
The study can be consulted on the website of the Annals of Internal Medicine, published on March 4, 2019.
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