Vaccination is up to 99% effective
National vaccine recommendations in the United States target an increasing number of vaccine-preventable diseases for reduction, elimination, or eradication. For the United States, pre-vaccine baselines were assessed based on representative historical data from primary sources and were compared to the most recent morbidity (2006) and mortality (2004) data for diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, poliomyelitis, measles, mumps, rubella (including congenital rubella syndrome), invasive Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), acute hepatitis B, hepatitis A, varicella, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and smallpox. Estimates of the percent reductions from baseline to recent were made without adjustment for factors that could affect vaccine-preventable disease morbidity, mortality, or reporting. A greater than 92% decline in cases and a 99% or greater decline in deaths due to diseases prevented by vaccines recommended before 1980 were shown for diphtheria, mumps, pertussis, and tetanus. Endemic transmission of poliovirus and measles and rubella viruses has been eliminated in the United States; smallpox has been eradicated worldwide. Declines were 80% or greater for cases and deaths of most vaccine-preventable diseases targeted since 1980 including hepatitis A, acute hepatitis B, Hib, and varicella. Declines in cases and deaths of invasive S. pneumoniae were 34% and 25%, respectively. The number of cases of most vaccine-preventable diseases is at an all-time low; hospitalizations and deaths have also shown striking decreases.
Historical Comparisons of Morbidity and Mortality for Vaccine-Preventable Diseases in the United States
JAMA 2007 298: 2155-2163
Tags: Bacteria, Biology, Health, Medicine, Microbiology, Science, Vaccines
The title is so misleading as to sound like a commercial sound bite for the vaccine companies. Perhaps Microbytes has gone over the top. Yes, there is no question that there are very safe and effective vaccines. But they all are not. To use historical retrospective reportable morbidity and mortality data to infer that the vaccines are the sole reason for a decrease in diseaes is junk science at its worst. Carefully designed case control studies conducted by researchers over the world cast good data to suggest that vaccines must be evaluated on a case by case basis and for the population at risk. Not all vaccines can be 99% effective. Such a statement ignores the biological rules of nature. Once again JAMA seems to be a less than a journal and more and more a political and economic mouth piece.
I for one do not want my immune system devoting most of its resources to vaccine antigens…