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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris)

@helenp-h.bsky.social

620 followers 270 following 63 posts

Vaccine Science, Associate Professor @UoA, Co-Director Global Vaccine Data Network. In pursuit of a hike, good food and wine.

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · Mar 13

1/3 My latest offering - a summary of the last 50-years of MMR safety data: The MMR vaccine has been tested. Repeatedly. For decades (in case there was actually any doubt!). Yet, zombie myths just won’t die. 🧟‍♂️ 1/3

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · Aug 8

My latest blog, breaking down RFK Jr.’s tin foil hat claims about aluminium in vaccines and autism. Epidemiologists see adjusted hazard ratios. RFK Jr. sees messages from the aluminium mothership🪱🚀 diplomaticimmunity.blog/no-rfk-jr-th...

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · Jul 14

5/ 🧠 What does it all mean?
— A lack of evidence that aluminium in vaccines causes autism, autoimmunity, or allergy.

www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/... #AluminumMyths #PublicHealth #AutismFacts #ScienceMatters

www.acpjournals.org

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · Jul 14

4/ 📉 CIs were incompatible with even modest risk increases. In plain English: If aluminium did cause problems, this study would’ve picked it up. It didn’t. ⚠️ But, this won’t stop the aluminium claims from spreading. Disinformation doesn’t care about data — it cares about drama

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · Jul 14

3/ 📊 What they found (per 1 mg of aluminum from vaccines by age 2):
— Autism: HR 0.93 (↓ 7% risk)
— ADHD: HR 0.90
— Asthma: HR 0.96
— Autoimmune disease: HR 0.98
— Allergies: HR 0.99
Translation: no increased risk — and in some cases, a slightly lower one.

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · Jul 14

2/ 💉 Study details:
— 1.2 million children
— 24 years of data
— Real-world vaccine exposure
— Outcomes: autism, ADHD, asthma, autoimmune & allergic diseases
— Published: Annals of Internal Medicine, 2025

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · Jul 14

1/ Aluminium in Vaccines — What 1.2 Million Kids Just Told Us
A huge Danish study by @andershviid.bsky.social and team just looked at aluminium in childhood vaccines and 50+ chronic diseases.
What did they find? Not harm. Not even a whisper of it.

Here’s what you need to know ⬇️

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · Jun 5

2/2 In my latest blog, I unpack 10 logical fallacies behind the “injected vs. ingested” claim that has traction in anti-vax circles. From appeals to nature to confirmation bias, this post highlights the reasoning errors that fuel fear.👇 Read the full post. diplomaticimmunity.blog/aluminum-vac...

10 Obvious Logical Fallacies in the "Injected vs Ingested" Aluminium Claim

Explore 10 logical fallacies in the “Injected vs Ingested” aluminium claim, revealing how misconceptions shape our understanding of vaccine safety.

diplomaticimmunity.blog

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · Jun 5

1/2 LOGIC LEAKS: In the swirling chaos of vaccine misinformation, this argument keeps bubbling up: “But injected aluminium is different!” Yes — it is. So is drinking vs. drowning. Route matters. But that doesn’t make aluminium adjuvants dangerous.

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · May 29

There is no bottom to the depths that tyranny will dive. #supportscience #academicfreedom

Dr Sanjana Hattotuwa @sanjanah.bsky.social · May 29

This complete destruction of America’s research, intellectual, and academic leadership is really quite something to study in real time - a soft power decimation that will last for far longer than Trump’s tenure. Promote Otago/NZ Uni’s as much as I can, but NZ High Comm’s can/should do so much more.

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · May 28

😡i made a meme

The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · May 28

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Risk of Guillain-Barré syndrome after COVID-19 vaccination or SARS-CoV-2 infection: A multinational self-controlled case series study

The association between Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) and certain COVID-19 vaccines is inconclusive. We investigated the risk of GBS after COVID-19 va…

www.sciencedirect.com

The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · May 28

Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) is a rare neurological disorder where the body’s immune system attacks the nerves, affecting about 1 to 4 people per 100,000 each year. It is rare! You need a lot of people to be able to do a study like this one!👇

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · May 17

Well said.

The Press @thepress.co.nz · May 17

OPINION: I’m sorry that politicians and the media spent last week focusing on my potty mouth and not the terrible injustice that is being done to care-workers, nurses, teachers and other underpaid women, Andrea Vance writes.

I said what I said. And I’m sorry... sort of

OPINION: Choreographed fragility and weaponised offence from female MPs over my use of a rude word has served as a distraction from their own actions.

www.thepress.co.nz

Reposted by The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris)

Associate Professor Siouxsie Wiles @siouxsiew.bsky.social · May 16

The last few years have been pretty hard & I’ve largely become a bit of a hermit. But I’ve briefly emerged to talk about the thing that’s reignited my spark - menstrual cups! Thanks to NZ Women’s Weekly and Elizabeth Easther for coaxing me out of my shell. www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/si...

Dr Siouxsie Wiles' Covid curse: ‘Abuse changed my world’

Pandemic fallout turned her into a hermit, but her future’s looking brighter.

www.nzherald.co.nz

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · May 16

#PandemicAgreement #NZPol #Vaccines #PublicHealth #Disinfo #GlobalHealth apps.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf...

apps.who.int

The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · May 16

This isn't Geneva hijacking Wellington, just countries agreeing not to trip over each other mid-crisis. Peters invokes a false dichotomy, presenting the issue as if NZ must choose between preserving sovereignty or signing the Agreement. In reality, the agreement explicitly protects nat sovereignty.

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · May 16

Winston Peters says it threatens NZ sovereignty. But Article 24.2 (and a bunch of others) literally says WHO can’t tell us what to do.

The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · May 16

The WHO Pandemic Agreement is not a global coup. It’s a blueprint for doing pandemics less badly next time.
Yes, I support it. It strengthens cooperation, not control.

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Reposted by The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris)

Jason Gale @jasongale.bsky.social · May 1

New: Walmart heiress Christy Walton is backing a vaccine watchdog effort at @cidrap.bsky.social as measles surges and political pressure mounts on US health agencies. “This is a firebreak against political arson,” @helenp-h.bsky.social told me. Gift link to Bloomberg story ⬇
tinyurl.com/4nwbjefr

US Vaccine Watchdog Effort Begins as Measles Surge Draws Alarm

The Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota has quietly begun to steer a national initiative to safeguard the scientific foundations of US vaccine policy — a b...

tinyurl.com

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · Apr 23

The roads are certainly leading to Rome on the matter of shingles vaccine and reduced dementia risk. Cool aye ! 😎

Eric Topol @erictopol.bsky.social · Apr 23

New @jama.com
Another new report (natural experiment) shows the link of a vaccine vs shingles to less dementia
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
this is the 3rd natural experiment to show the effect

Herpes Zoster Vaccination and Dementia Occurrence

This study investigates whether herpes zoster vaccination affects the probability of receiving a new diagnosis of dementia.

jamanetwork.com

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · Apr 23

Another victim of political whim and the delegitimization of science. 🤬Breaks my heart. 💔 www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/3606...

Groundbreaking project at Auckland Uni stopped in its tracks by US funding cut

Funding cut by Trump administration “isn’t just fiscally wasteful — it’s ethically indefensible”, says vaccinologist and professor Helen Petousis-Harris.

www.stuff.co.nz

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The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris) @helenp-h.bsky.social · Apr 14

🧠 Can vaccines protect your brain?

Latest blog. The evidence is growing - shingles, flu & COVID vaccines lower risk of dementia & stroke.
Better vaxxed than sorry. Hope they expanded funding
Viral villains vs vaccine heroes 👉 diplomaticimmunity.blog/dementia-and... #Vaccines #BrainHealth #Shingrix

Can Vaccines Help Combat Dementia and Stroke Effectively? Yep!

Viral infections increase dementia and stroke risk. Discover how vaccines—especially Shingles vaccines—may protect brain health and delay cognitive decline.

diplomaticimmunity.blog

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Reposted by The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris)

Associate Professor Siouxsie Wiles @siouxsiew.bsky.social · Mar 21

An excellent long read about how conspiracist attacked one of the worlds leading scientific journals. Both extraordinary and also horribly unsurprising. www.computerweekly.com/news/3665534...

Top science journal faced secret attacks from Covid conspiracy theory group | Computer Weekly

One of the world’s most prestigious general science journals, was the target of a two-year long sustained and virulent secret attack by a conspiratorial group of extreme Brexit lobbyists with high-lev...

www.computerweekly.com

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Reposted by The Vaccinologist's Desk (Dr Helen Petousis-Harris)

Richard M. Carpiano, PhD, MPH @rmcarpiano.medsky.social · Mar 21

Nice explainer on why letting H5N1 rip (yes, it was proposed by RFK Jr.) is a terrible, ignorant, and flat-out dangerous idea for many reasons...
Kudos to @drjenndowd.bsky.social 🛟📉🧪 policy

"Let it rip" for chickens? Don't put your eggs in that basket.

The Great Birdington Declaration

jenndowd.substack.com

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