I often see patients in my practice who have chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME). Over the years several candidate viral triggers for the condition have been proposed, including EBV, HHV-6, HTLVs and various enteroviruses (including CMV). Every few years or so, some research group whose heads are stuck firmly in the clouds comes out with a hyped-up revelation that the one and true “cause” of CFS/ME has been discovered.

You might wonder what relevance jokes about an erstwhile Playboy centrefold might have to a science blog, but bear with me – all will soon become clear. Many readers of science blogs such as Layscience will be familiar with the singularity that is Jenny McCarthy, autism activist and antivaccine campaigner. Jenny’s point of view regarding science in general and vaccines in particular is that her own experiences trump those of orthodox science, and that her opinions, backed up with her diploma in logic from the University of Google, matter far more than the views of others with specific clinical and research experience and established authority in the field.

So, now the verdict is out, what does it actually say?

Background:
As we all know, Wakefield and his colleagues published a case series on autistic children in the Lancet back in 1998. The paper itself was not particularly remarkable and scientifically was rather substandard and barely of publishable merit. However it did mention a possible link between MMR vaccination and autistic enterocolitis, something Wakefield went on to suggest this in much stronger terms in media interviews, implying causality. The rest is history.

There has been so much published about H1N1 swine flu in recent months that despite my keen interest in the topic (being an infectious diseases clinician involved with determining policy and strategic pandemic flu planning in my own hospital as well as looking after clinical cases), I can barely keep up with the medical aspects of the disease, never mind the rest of the information. But, as is ever the case, much of the other material that is in the public’s eye seems to be based on uninformed opinion and comment, rather than scientific facts.

I had intended to talk about the “incalculable” harm that may have been done by the recent irresponsible media reporting about HPV vaccine, but then I realised that much of the actual damage can be estimated quite accurately. Previous unfounded scare-mongering about the side effects of vaccines have always resulted in measurable declines in vaccination rates, which have always translated directly into additional deaths or cases of disease.

This is a guest post by British doctor DeeTee. See more by DeeTee here.

The Myspace picture albums seem to capture a wonderful moment in time. The scene is idyllic. Sun-kissed palm trees are set against an azure Caribbean sky, and a happy couple delight in their holiday trip to the Florida Keys. Elsewhere, we can see photos of them with their children, a wholesome, all-American family enjoying everything life has to offer and dreaming of good times yet to come. But despite the glowing vitality that is projected in the photos, things are not what they seem. The woman you see is Karri Stokely, a 43 year old who was diagnosed with HIV infection when she was 29 years old. She is keen to share her story, and does so on several other websites and blogs. It should be a story of courage and hope, but I fear it will not turn out that way. For Karri has decided to completely ignore medical advice and forgo her HIV medication.

This is a guest post by British doctor DeeTee. See more by DeeTee here.

Sometimes I really wonder what planet the homeopaths live on. Recently the World Health Organisation responded to the concerns about the use of homeopathy in the developing world for serious diseases such as AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and infant diarrhoea, all of which are diseases with a massive morbidity and mortality, and all of which can be treated with effective conventional medical therapies. I have pointed out this silliness previously.

Guest post by British doctor DeeTee. See more by DeeTee here.

As the swine flu pandemic tightens its global grip, antivaccinationists far and wide are gearing up for their propaganda war against the H1N1 vaccine. Their objections, predictably enough, conform to the usual diet of antivaccine canards that they always employ to frighten people about vaccines, but the novelty of the current pandemic offers them unlimited scope for scaremongering among the millions of worried potential vaccine recipients.

Guest post by British doctor DeeTee. See more by DeeTee here.

As the H1N1 swine flu pandemic gathers pace, with 29 deaths to date, the attitude of the public seems to vary from rank indifference to blind panic. This view is reflected within my own hospital, where news of a possible flu admission is greeted by some staff saying "so what?" while others demand the equivalent of a biological "hazmat" suit before they get within a mile of a case.

[bpsdb] Guest post by British doctor DeeTee. See more by DeeTee here.

Recently, Voice of Young Science wrote an open letter to the WHO appealing for an end to the promotion and use of homeopathy for life threatening infections such as HIV, malaria and tuberculosis in developing countries. This is an appeal that is close to my heart. When I worked in Africa I saw how detrimental ineffective traditional and “alternative” forms of medicine could be, and how easily people could come to rely on totally inappropriate services for their health care. I remember one distressing case where a parent insisted on taking his small child out of the local hospital where I worked in order for the traditional healer to administer “muti” (a form of traditional medicine often made from herbs or occasionally human body parts). The child was suffering from meningitis, which was eminently treatable with antibiotics. He was brought back to us moribund the next day, when he died.