Children in the U.S., Britain and many other Western countries are usually given the measles, mumps, rubella vaccine at age 1. But when researchers, led by Dr. Andrew Wakefield, published a report linking that vaccine to autism in 1998, it unleashed an anti-vaccine movement in the U.S. and in Britain.

After years of investigation, a British medical panel concluded that Dr. Wakefield had been dishonest, violated basic research ethics rules and showed a “callous disregard” for the suffering of children involved in his research. With that decision, Dr. Richard Horton, editor in chief of The Lancet, retracted the 1998 paper. Dr. Horton described the panel’s ruling as, “a damning indictment of Andrew Wakefield and his research.”

The retraction is the result of a thorough reassessment of the scientific methods and financial conflicts of Dr. Andrew Wakefield. The General Medical Council in Britain concluded that Dr. Wakefield had subjected 11 children to invasive tests like lumbar punctures and colonoscopies that they did not need and for which he did not receive ethical approval. Dr. Wakefield was also found to have patented a measles vaccine in 1997 that could prosper if the combined vaccine were withdrawn or discredited.

The paper has been a bane to Dr. Paul Offit, co-inventor of the M.M.R. vaccine. In a recent radio interview, he stated, “It should have never been allowed to be published. I mean, we really shouldn’t be able to publish hypotheses. I could, for example, argue that I think peanut butter sandwiches cause leukemia. I’m sure I can find five children with leukemia who had eaten peanut butter sandwiches in the last month.”

But the retraction has done little to deteriorate Dr. Wakefield’s status among parents’ groups in the United States. Despite numerous scientific studies that have found no link between vaccines and autism, parents continue to believe that vaccinations are related to their children’s mental health problems.

For more information about whether you can sue a vaccine maker for an injury caused by a vaccine, view this Florida child injury lawyer video blog.

Circumstantial evidence exists to link vaccines with other serious illnesses and conditions such as Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS), and autism. GBS is why you might want to think twice about receiving the swine flu vaccine due out this fall. GBS is a brain disorder that attacks the lining of the nerves, causing paralysis including the inability to breathe, and can be fatal.

Recently, England’s health department warned neurologists to be on heightened alert for an increase in GBS associated with the swine flu vaccine. They have cause for concern. A swine flu vaccine administered in America in 1976 coincided with an outbreak of GBS among those who received the vaccine.

In fact, more people died from GBS than from the swine flu. No one knows what causes GBS so some scientists dispute that it is caused by a vaccine. However, the circumstantial evidence was so strong that the U.S. withdrew the vaccine and was forced to pay millions to those afflicted with GBS.

One statistical study that looked at the 1976 outbreak found that the swine flu vaccine increases your chances of developing GBS by eight times. However, those chances are still small. Of the 40 million people who received the vaccine in 1976, 80,000 people contracted GBS and 25 people died from it.

While the chances are small of developing GBS, the possibility requires you to undertake your own risk analysis. GBS can be deadly. So can swine flu. Do your research and determine which choice is best for you.

Your risk of dying from swine flu once you contract is is about 0.4 percent – very low. It’s slightly higher than the regular flu but still lower than the 2 to 3 percent fatality rate of the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic.

However, pregnancy and obesity are large risk factors that increase your likelihood of dying from swine flu. About half of people who have died from swine flu have been pregnant or had other health conditions, especially diabetes and conditions linked with obesity.

Today’s swine flu vaccine is slightly different that that of 1976, but no testing has been done on human adults or children

GBS attacks the lining of the nerves, leaving them unable to transmit signals to muscles effectively. It can cause paralysis that mostly affects the hands and feet. In serious cases, patients need to be kept on a ventilator, and it can be fatal.

Death is caused by paralysis of the respiratory system, causing the victim to suffocate.