A federally funded study released Tuesday reported a “positive association” between “vaccine-related aluminum exposure” and “persistent asthma” in children 24-59 months old. Overall, kids in the study who received 3 milligrams or more of vaccine-related aluminum had at least a 36% higher risk of developing persistent asthma than kids who got less than 3, the study’s lead author, Dr. Matthew F. Daley, told The Associated Press.
Daley was quick to urge caution in the interpretation of the results, telling STAT, “I’m still going to advocate for vaccines as strongly as I did before we had these findings.” The study was published in the medical journal Academic Pediatrics. In addition to Daley, the authors included Dr. Frank DeStefano and other current and former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) staff.
The authors were careful to not suggest a causal relationship between vaccine-related aluminum and asthma and noted that “additional investigation of this hypothesis appears warranted.” According to the study authors, “Aluminum is integral to many vaccines, enhancing immunogenicity and effectiveness. Aluminum adjuvants have a well-established safety profile, and are used in many vaccines given in early childhood.” The CDC undertook the study in response to a call in 2013 from the Institute of Medicine — now known as the National Academy of Medicine — for more federal research into the safety of childhood vaccines, including their use of aluminum.