Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, May 3, 1993 TAG: 9305030287
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Short
Like most procedures in medicine, it is quite true that vaccination does not provide an absolute guarantee. Neither is it free from possible side effects, some of which may be serious. But disadvantages must always be viewed against the background of overall benefit.
On the face of it, the public might be expected to review the evidence and make its own choice. Unfortunately, one cannot make good judgments based on incomplete, biased information. Today's public (even its oldest members) can scarcely remember the scourges of infectious diseases of the past - tuberculosis, smallpox, measles, poliomyelitis, etc. It is easy to be lulled into a false sense of security and to forget the vital role played by immunization in bringing under control the epidemics of potentially fatal infectious diseases that were common two or three generations ago.
It is correct that improved nutrition, understanding of epidemiology, better hygiene and advanced lifestyle are very important factors in the fight against infection. It is also an indisputable fact that vaccination has played a critical, if not exclusive, role in reducing disease. One must examine the whole picture.
To promote the erosion of public confidence in immunization as an essential component of preventive medicine is to invite serious social consequences.
PETER EYRE\ BLACKSBURG
by CNB