{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,15]],"date-time":"2026-10-15T11:09:33Z","timestamp":1792062573171,"version":"4.4.0"},"reference-count":13,"publisher":"American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)","issue":"3","content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2004,9,1]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Objective. There is an established link between exposure to mercury and impaired childhood cognitive development and early motor skills. Thimerosal (also known as thiomersal), a preservative used in a number of children's vaccines, contains ethylmercury (an organic compound of mercury), and there has been concern that this exposure to mercury may be of some detriment to young children. The aim of this research was to test in a large United Kingdom population\u2013based cohort whether there is any evidence to justify such concerns.<\/jats:p><jats:p>Methods. We used population data from a longitudinal study on childhood health and development. The study has been monitoring &amp;gt;14 000 children who are from the geographic area formerly known as Avon, United Kingdom, and were delivered in 1991\u20131992. The age at which doses of thimerosal-containing vaccines were administered was recorded, and measures of mercury exposure by 3, 4, and 6 months of age were calculated and compared with a number of measures of childhood cognitive and behavioral development covering the period from 6 to 91 months of age.<\/jats:p><jats:p>Results. Contrary to expectation, it was common for the unadjusted results to suggest a beneficial effect of thimerosal exposure. For example, exposure at 3 months was inversely associated with hyperactivity and conduct problems at 47 months; motor development at 6 months and at 30 months; difficulties with sounds at 81 months; and speech therapy, special needs, and \u201cstatementing\u201d at 91 months. After adjustment for birth weight, gestation, gender, maternal education, parity, housing tenure, maternal smoking, breastfeeding, and ethnic origins, we found 1 result of 69 to be in the direction hypothesized\u2014poor prosocial behavior at 47 months was associated with exposure by 3 months of age (odds ratio: 1.12; 95% confidence interval: 1.01-1.23) compared with 8 results that still supported a beneficial effect.<\/jats:p><jats:p>Conclusions. We could find no convincing evidence that early exposure to thimerosal had any deleterious effect on neurologic or psychological outcome.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1542\/peds.2003-1176-l","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2004,11,5]],"date-time":"2004-11-05T17:23:17Z","timestamp":1099675397000},"page":"577-583","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":123,"title":["Thimerosal Exposure in Infants and Developmental Disorders: A Prospective Cohort Study in the United Kingdom Does Not Support a Causal Association"],"prefix":"10.1542","volume":"114","author":[{"given":"Jon","family":"Heron","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"From the Unit of Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology, Department of Community-Based Medical Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jean","family":"Golding","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"From the Unit of Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology, Department of Community-Based Medical Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"name":"and the ALSPAC Study Team","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"417","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2004,9,1]]},"reference":[{"key":"2021121011131342200_R1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Myers GJ, Davidson PW, Cox C, Shamlaye C, Cernichiari E, Clarkson TW. Twenty-seven years studying the human neurotoxicity of methylmercury exposure. Environ Res.\u20082000;83:275\u2013285","DOI":"10.1006\/enrs.2000.4065"},{"key":"2021121011131342200_R2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Grandjean P, Weihe P, White RF, Debes F. Cognitive performance of children prenatally exposed to \u201csafe\u201d levels of methylmercury. Environ Res.\u20081998;77:165\u2013172","DOI":"10.1006\/enrs.1997.3804"},{"key":"2021121011131342200_R3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Ball LK, Ball R, Pratt RD. An assessment of thimerosal use in childhood vaccines. Pediatrics.\u20082001;107:1147\u20131154","DOI":"10.1542\/peds.107.5.1147"},{"key":"2021121011131342200_R4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Pichichero ME, Cernichiari E, Lopreiato J, Treanot J. Mercury concentrations and metabolism in infants receiving vaccines containing thiomersal: a descriptive study. Lancet.\u20082002;360:1737\u20131741","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(02)11682-5"},{"key":"2021121011131342200_R5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Freed GL, Andreae MC, Cowan AE, Katz SL. The process of public policy formulation: the case of thimerosal in vaccines. Pediatrics.\u20082002;109:1153\u20131159","DOI":"10.1542\/peds.109.6.1153"},{"key":"2021121011131342200_R6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Verstraeten T, Davis RL, DeStefano F, et al. Safety of thimerosal-containing vaccines: a two-phased study of computerized health maintenance organization databases. Vaccine Safety Datalink Team. Pediatrics.\u20082003;112:1039\u20131048","DOI":"10.1542\/peds.112.5.1039"},{"key":"2021121011131342200_R7","unstructured":"Immunization Safety Review: Thimerosal-Containing Vaccines and Neuro-developmental Disorders. Institute of Medicine; 2001. 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J Child Psychol Psychiatry.\u20081997;38:581\u2013586","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1469-7610.1997.tb01545.x"},{"key":"2021121011131342200_R11","unstructured":"Goodman R, Scott S. Comparing the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and the Child Behavior Checklist: is small beautiful?J Abnorm Child Psychol.\u20081999;27:17\u201324"},{"key":"2021121011131342200_R12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Frankenburg WK, Dodds J, Archer P, Shapiro H, Bresnick B. The Denver II: a major revision and restandardization of the Denver Developmental Screening Test. Pediatrics.\u20081992;89:91\u201397","DOI":"10.1542\/peds.89.1.91"},{"key":"2021121011131342200_R13","unstructured":"Daniels JL, Longnecker MP, Rowland AS, Golding J, the ALSPAC Study Team. Fish intake during pregnancy in relation to offspring's early cognitive development. 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