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Dept of Health

Answer

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the link between mercury in vaccines given to babies and (a) autism and (b) heart disease. [109928] Ms Blears: Thiomersal is an ethylmercury-containing compound that has played an important role either as a preservative or in the initial stages of the manufacture of some vaccines for over 60 years. As with all medicinal products, the Medicines and Healthcare Products RegulatoryAgency (MHRA) and the Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM) keep the safety of thiomersal-containing vaccines under continual review. The CSM has reviewed the safety, including postulated neurological adverse effects, of thiomersal-containing vaccines on a number of occasions. CSM has recently reviewed two UK-based epidemiological studies that have provided reassuring results regarding the safety of thiomersal in vaccines, in relation to neurodevelopmental disorders. One of these studies, which used the United Kingdom's general practice research database (GPRD), specifically investigated whether there is any link between early thiomersal exposure through immunisation and autism. This study concluded that administration of thiomersal through childhood immunisation in the UK was not associated with an increased risk of developing a neurological developmental disability, including autism. The CSM has carefully considered the results of a recent study, by Geier and Geier, that suggests an association between thiomersal exposure through the United States childhood immunisation schedule and the development of autism and heart disease. CSM advised that the methodology in this publication had been inadequately described and that the authors conclusions regarding the association between thiomersal in vaccines and autism, speech disorders and heart disease are not justified. The CSM has advised that, with the exception of allergic reactions such as redness and swelling at the injection site, there is no evidence of harm from thiomersal contained in vaccines. The CSM has advised that the benefits of immunisation with thiomersal-containing vaccines outweigh any potential risks of vaccination.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

109928; 404 c865-6W;404 c861-2W

Session

2002-03

Subjects

Children Health hazards Vaccination Thiomersal Mercury Committee on Safety of Medicines

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk