(FILES): This file photo taken on January 21, 2018 shows a young woman as she receives a flu shot at a Walgreens pharmacy in San Francisco, California.
Joe Accurso, a 47-year-old chiropractor, refused to vaccinate his daughter against polio, measles or whooping cough because he believes that getting sick wouldn't be dangerous and might even be good for her."I am actually disappointed that she doesn't have the opportunity to get the chicken pox, to get diseases that make her body stronger in the future. That is our big reason," he told AFP.Don't call them "anti-vaxxers." Joe and his wife Cathy, a physical therapist, are part of a vocal minority that believes in "vaccine choice."These parents -- many of whom are white, educated and upper middle class -- choose not to immunize their children against diseases which collectively used to kill millions children per year around the world. / AFP PHOTO / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / JUSTIN SULLIVAN
本報記者
加拿大公共衛生部(Public Health Agency of Canada)發出警告,由於歐洲多個國家的麻疹個案激增,旅客出發前,不論目的地,須確定已經接種有關疫苗。世界衛生組織早前通報,去年麻疹在歐洲造成35個兒童死亡。由羅馬尼亞至英國,個案由2016年的歷史最低數字5,273宗,激增4倍至去年2萬1,315宗。該病主要在未接種麻疹疫苗的兒童間傳播。
全球近年流行反疫苗學說。韋克菲爾德醫生(Dr. Andrew J. Wakefield)在20年前於醫學期刊《刺針》(The Lancet)發表文章,用8名兒童的病例,證明麻疹 – 腮腺炎 – 風疹疫苗引發腸道炎症和自閉症。該期刊後來收迴文章,韋克菲爾德醫生也因收受控告疫苗公司律師的利益,而被英國醫學會停牌。