WASHINGTON (ABC 4 News) - Did childhood vaccines cause a nine-year-old Georgia girl's autism symptoms? In an unprecedented settlement, the government says there may be a possible link ... and has awarded her family compensation from a federal vaccine injury fund.
Now, young Hannah Poling's case and its implications in the vaccine-autism debate seem to be creating more questions than answers.
Hannah Poling was a normal little girl on her first birthday. Seven months later, her mother, a registered nurse, says something was wrong.
"Hannah started demonstrating several symptoms of classic autism, such as staring at lights, running in circles, and looking at fans," Terry Poling said.
The symptoms began after a series of vaccinations -- nine in all. Some doctors say the vaccinations may have aggravated a pre-existing disease in Hannah's brain called mitochondrial disease. Once that happened, Hannah's father, a neurologist, believes it triggered her autism. "Following vaccination, that illness produced stress leading to permanent brain injury as manifested by autism and seizures,” Jon Poling said.
In 1999, thimerosal was ordered removed from most vaccines, although it took until 2003 to phase it out. Hannah is now nine years old, and Thursday the family celebrated a victory in court. Hannah's is the first case of its kind in which the federal government allowed that, in Hannah's case, because of the pre-existing condition, there is likely a connection between her vaccinations and her autism symptoms.
The government plans to pay the family from a fund that compensates people injured by vaccines. How much the compensation should be has not been decided.
Meanwhile, the CDC, American Academy of Pediatrics, and other renowned medical organizations maintain there is no known link between vaccines and autism.
