By Eileen Buckley
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wbfo/local-wbfo-986341.mp3
Buffalo, NY – Republican Presidential hopeful Michele Bachmann caused a stir when she stated that 12-year-old girls are being forced by the government to receive the Human Papillomavirus vaccine.
Bachmann was criticizing Texas Governor Rick Perry for his executive order to mandate to vaccinate underage girls in his state.
The American Academy of Pediatrics is now conducting damage control on misinformation from Bachmann's remarks.
Dr. Richard Judelsohn, a Buffalo pediatrician, has worked to promote vaccines and their importance. Bachmann publicly stated that the HPV vaccine is dangerous and can cause mental retardation.
The American Academy of Pediatrics jumped in to set the record straight. Judelsohn noted most mental retardation is diagnosed at infancy or very early in life.
The pediatric organization said there is absolutely no scientific validity to Bachmann's statement.
The following is a full statement released by the American Academy of Pediatrics on HPV Vaccine:
By: O Marion Burton, MD, FAAP, president, American Academy of Pediatrics "The American Academy of Pediatrics would like to correct false statements made in the Republican presidential campaign that HPV vaccine is dangerous and can cause mental retardation. There is absolutely no scientific validity to this statement. Since the vaccine has been introduced, more than 35 million doses have been administered, and it has an excellent safety record.
"The American Academy of Pediatrics, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the American Academy of Family Physicians all recommend that girls receive HPV vaccine around age 11 or 12. That's because this is the age at which the vaccine produces the best immune response in the body, and because it's important to protect girls well before the onset of sexual activity. In the U.S., about 6 million people, including teens, become infected with HPV each year, and 4,000 women die from cervical cancer. This is a life-saving vaccine that can protect girls from cervical cancer."