An outbreak of mumps (a very mild disease) in a 95% vaccinated population (that should have provided "Herd Immunity"). This illustrates again that the at-least 60 year old notion that antibodies are a measure of acquired immunity is plainly false. Seroconversion (which means that the person vaccinated showed antibodies to the vaccine) does not equate to immunity. Since that time much has been learned about the complexity of immunity and the "immune response" in the body that ought to raise serious questions about the very foundations of vaccine theory. For example, the way that whole-body immunity tackles natural measles and acquires long-term immunity thereby, by way of example, is very different to the artificial method of vaccination.

Whole body immunity involves the interplay between both the cellular and humoral immune systems, which together work to expel the dead cells / toxins in the case of measles in the body - thus the various symptoms that are seen with measles. That's just the body's natural response. So we see the fever, rash etc. all of which is the result of the combined and synergistic actions of the cellular and humoral immune systems.

Vaccination simply skews the immune system towards the humoral aspect (which is involved in antibody production), and suppresses the cellular aspect. This means, that when a person is exposed to measles, the body will not follow the same symptoms as in a natural infection, because the immune system has been skewed and thus cannot work in the same way as in a natural situation.

Though it is claimed that vaccination prevents the spread of disease, this claim is plainly false as fully vaccinated populations still have outbreaks of diseases such as measles.

Matthias Schlegel, attending physician (a), Joseph J Osterwalder, head (b), Renato L Galeazzi, department chief (a), Pietro L Vernazza, senior research fellow (c). Comparative efficacy of three mumps vaccines during disease outbreak in eastern Switzerland: cohort study. BMJ 1999;319:352 (7 August).

(a) Department of medicine, Kantonsspital, 9007 St Gallen, Switzerland, (b) Emergency Department, Kantonsspital, 9007 St Gallen, (c) Institute for Clinical Microbiology and Immunology, 9001 St Gallen.

After the introduction of immunisation against measles, mumps, and rubella, numerous outbreaks of mumps were reported in the 1980s and '90s in Switzerland and southern Europe. The rubini strain is still widely used in Europe, and we report here a large outbreak of mumps in a population with a high vaccination rate and examine the differential efficacy of the three vaccine strains.

An outbreak was investigated in a small village in Switzerland. All children (ages 5-13) were included in the cohort. Information on immunisation status was obtained from vaccine certificates. The person who investigated the cases of mumps was blinded with regard to the vaccination status. A case was defined if mumps virus was isolated on culture, if a doctor confirmed the diagnosis, or if the typical clinical picture was described in a sibling of a patient with confirmed disease. The absence of IgG antibodies to mumps virus served as confirmation of full susceptibility to mumps in non-vaccinated children without clinical signs of the disease.

The cohort comprised 165 children. All questionnaires sent to their parents were returned and evaluated (response rate 100%). All immunised children had received their immunisation before the age of 2 years, almost half with the rubini strain (table). Sixty six cases of epidemic parotitis occurred, resulting in an overall attack rate of 40%. Altogether 11(16%) children had parotid enlargement without fever; only one case (vaccinated with the Rubini strain) had a complicated course that required hospital admission. The attack rate was similar in unvaccinated children (63%) and children vaccinated with the rubini strain (67%) but significantly lower in those vaccinated with the Jeryl-Lynn (14%) or the urabe strain (8%) (table). When the attack rate for the two currently available vaccine strains was compared the relative risk of developing mumps was 4.8-fold greater (95% confidence interval 2.1 to 11.1) in children vaccinated with the Rubini compared with the Jeryl-Lynn strain. The low vaccine efficacy of the rubini strain was observed throughout all age groups. In contrast, cases of mumps in children vaccinated with the Jeryl-Lynn or Urabe strains occurred only at the age of 8 or older. In the three vaccine categories no difference in the severity of mumps was observed.

Note that the urabe strain was withdrawn because it was causing encephalitis (inflammation in the brain, meningitis)in vaccinated subjects.

And also:

More than a decade after systematic vaccination was introduced, the incidence of mumps is still high in Switzerland, Spain, and Italy. Several explanations for this are under discussion: inadequate vaccination rates, natural periodicity, and other factors such as differences in viral strains and loss of mucosal immunity. This study is notable because it describes an outbreak in a rural population with a high vaccination rate (95%). The attack rate of 63% in the unvaccinated group is consistent with other published reports. When compared with no vaccination, immunisation with the rubini strain resulted in no detectable benefit.

Several serological surveys show comparable seroconversion rates for the Rubini, Jeryl-Lynn, and Urabe strains, but under field conditions other variables might be more relevant. This study supports the general importance of postmarketing surveillance.