Autism treatment: Science hijacked to support alternative therapies
The stories in the article are just additional examples that the antivaccine and autism "movement" is not really looking for answers. They are just ideologically inspired to get their point of view across, even if it means subjecting children to dangerous and unproven therapies:
[..] doctors have treated children with a blood product typically reserved for people with severe immune system disorders like the one known as "bubble boy" disease. They have used it to justify sealing children with autism in pressurized bags and submarine-like metal chambers. Other children have been given a drug used to treat extremely rare genetic disorders.I'm sure there is money to be made there too, but that's the case with most of the SCAMs (So-called Complementary and Alternative Medicine).
As I often do for stories of this type, I’m keeping a running list or index of pro- and con- blog posts. This post is on the list.
ReplyDeleteThe list is here
http://lizditz.typepad.com/i_speak_of_dreams/2009/11/the-unethical-treatments-that-autism-is-vaccine-injury-and-other-false-premises-gives-rise-to.html
For readers new to the world of biomedical treatment, it is worth noting that a number of bloggers who are affected by autism are pro-science and pro-vaccine. They repudiate the world of "Age of Autism", Generation Rescue, and "Defeat Autism Now!"(DAN!). I will mention a few (in no particular order) the group blog LeftBrain/RightBrain (leftbrainrightbrain.co.uk/) Natural Variation (http://autismnaturalvariation.blogspot.com/) Countering Age of Autism (http://counteringageofautism.blogspot.com/) Autism News Beat (http://autism-news-beat.com/) and Club 166 (http://club166.blogspot.com). There are many more.