| WHO Insists H1N1 Deaths Are
Not Attributable To Vaccines
Editor's note: Pay special attention to the links in the
article which lead to reports which factually opposes almost every
statement made in by the WHO.
The World Health Organization said last week that the H1N1 vaccine
had been completely cleared of blame for 41 deaths which health
authorities worldwide had investigated after suspicions they might
have been caused by the inoculation.
The U.N. agency reaffirmed its position that the pandemic
vaccine is as safe as the seasonal flu vaccine. It also voiced
concerns that some pregnant women and others at risk were shunning
it because of a fear
of side-effects.
"No new safety issue has been identified from reports issued
to date ... Reporting so far reconfirms that the pandemic flu
vaccine is as safe as the seasonal flu vaccine," Marie-Paule
Kieny, WHO's top vaccine expert, told a telephone conference.
Side-effects commonly reported include swelling and redness or
pain at the injection site, although some had fever or headache.
A "small number of deaths" had been reported, she said,
and a WHO spokeswoman later put the figure at 41 in six countries.
"Although some investigations are still ongoing, the results
of the completed investigations reported to WHO have ruled out
that the pandemic vaccine is the cause of death," Kieny said.
Authorities in China have reported 2 deaths following inoculation
and 15 cases of severe side effects, the WHO said in a statement.
"Thorough investigation of these deaths, including a review
of autopsy results, determined that underlying medical conditions
were the cause of death and not the vaccine," it said of
China.
Fewer than a dozen suspected cases of Guillain-Barre syndrome
had been reported following pandemic vaccination, she said. "Only
a few of this Guillain-Barre may be linked to the pandemic vaccine
.... and patients have recovered," she added.
GlaxoSmithKline Plc, AstraZeneca Plc, Novartis and Sanofi-Aventis
are among about 25 manufacturers
producing H1N1 vaccine using different techniques.
"No significant difference in the safety profile between
different types of vaccine has been detected," Kieny said.
She denounced conspiracy theories about vaccines circulating
on the Internet, saying they were causing "artificial
worries."
"We have to reiterate that the vaccines are safe, that the
disease in certain people can be severe and can be cause of death,"
she said.
The H1N1 virus is said to have killed 6,250
people worldwide since emerging in North America last April,
according to the WHO.
A survey of doctors showed on Wednesday that more than half of
Britons being offered vaccination against H1N1 were turning it
down because they feared side-effects or believed the virus was
too mild to bother about.
"It is worrying indeed that certain groups don't seem to
be coming readily to be vaccinated. But we hope that the data
... on the safety of these vaccines will dissipate the worries
that a population might have and will help convince them that
the vaccine is safe and vaccination will protect them against
this disease which can be severe," Kieny said.
*
A full list of h1n1 vaccine ingredients, alerts and warnings.
Reference Sources 89
November 24, 2009
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