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------." Washington, DC, 2 March 1994 -The National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC) operated by Dissatisfied Parents Together (DPT) says that a new Institute of Medicine (10M) report on the association between DPT vaccine and permanent brain damage confirms that the vaccine can cause children to suffer acute brain inflammation which sometimes leads to death or permanent neurologi cal damage. The parent-consumer activist group also charges that they have obtained evi dence through the Freedom of IInformation Act that the Depar~ment of Health and Human Services (DHHS) is famng to properly monitor reports of death and injuries following vaccination and that doctors arou~ the country are failing to report to DHHS deaths and injuries which occur after vaccination. In a year-long investigation of the Vaccine Adverse Reaction Reporting System (VA'ERS) operated by the Food and Drug Administration, NVICIDPT analysed VAHRS computer discs used by the FDA to store data on reports of deaths and injuries following DPT vaccination. A total of 54,0(']2 reports of adverse events following vaccination were listed in a 39-month period! from July 1990 to November 1993 with 12,504 reports being associated with DPT vaccine, including 471 deaths. A wide variation in the numbers of reports associated with different lots of DPT vaccine were discovered, with some lots listing many more deaths and injuries than others. In one DPT vaccine lot, there were 129 adverse events and nine deaths reported between September 1992 and September 1993. Most adverse events occurred within a few days of vaccination and many reports also contained descriptions of classic pertussis vaccine reac tion symptoms. This particu·lar lot met the FDA's criteria for triggering an "investigation" (i.e., report of one death or two serious injuries, within a seven-day period) 11 times within a 12-month period. "There are some lots of vaccine which are associated with many more deaths and injuries than other lots. These lots are often referred to as 'hot lots'. Even though the FDA's criteria for an investigation were triggered 11 times within a 12-month period on just one of the many lots we looked at, we know for a fact the lot was never [iecalled. The FDA has not recalled a suspicious lot of DPT vaccine because of high numbers of deaths and injuries associated with it for at least 15 years," said Kathi Williams, NVIClDPT Co founder and Acting Director. "That is because the position of those who operate VAERS is that the DPT vaccine does not cause death or injury. So the death and injury reports are ignored. It is a shocking example of how little we know about the true extent of vaccine associated injuries and deaths." The NVICIDPT investigation was featured on the 2nd March 1994 NBC News "Now with Torn Brokaw and Katie Couric" show. At the end of February 1994, NVICIDPT FEBRUARY -MARCH 1995 NEXUS • 27