The success of global smallpox eradication in 1980 led all the nations of the world to discontinue smallpox vaccination. To date, however, the threat of deliberate release of smallpox virus has led health authorities to reconsider smallpox vaccination and at the same time, to urge to evaluate duration of the immunity of the population vaccinated before 1980. Although available data is scarce an...

THIS IS THE SECOND ARTICLE IN a series entitled Medical and Public Health Management Following the Use of a Biological Weapon: Consensus Statements of the Working Group on Civilian Biodefense. The working group has identified a limited number of widely known organisms that could cause disease and deaths in sufficient numbers to cripple a city or region. Smallpox is one of the most serious of th...

In 2011, the World Health Organization will recommend the fate of existing smallpox stockpiles, but circumstances have changed since the complete destruction of these cultures was first proposed. Recent studies suggest that variola and its experimental surrogate, vaccinia, have a remarkable ability to modify the human immune response through complex mechanisms that scientists are only just begi...

This article argues that a detailed examination of factors contributing to the development of complex structures and strategies for smallpox eradication in South Asia in the 1970s can provide fruitful indications for the reformulation of the national chapters of the global polio eradication programme in this region. There is a magnificent archive in the WHO's Geneva offices, which details how s...

A direct fluorescent-antibody test for smallpox is described which utilizes a conjugated antivaccinia serum that was purified by diethylaminoethyl fractionation. The purity of the conjugate was analyzed by density gradient centrifugation, and specific staining of smallpox and nonsmallpox specimens was measured quantitatively by a photovoltmeter. Variola elementary bodies were identified in all ...

as the vanquisher of smallpox, which for centuries before his time had ravaged the world. The principle of inoculation for the prevention of disease dates back to a period of great antiquity, and as a protection against smallpox it, appears to have had its origin in India, where inoculation with actual virus taken from the smallpox pustule is said to have been known over 1,000 years before the ...

179 SMALLPOX, ERADICATED WORLDWIDE IN THE 1970s, has reemerged as a possible bioterror threat.1 Following the events of 9/11 and the subsequent anthrax poisonings, experts’ concerns heightened over the use of smallpox as a bioterror agent because it is transmitted easily from person to person. The population is immunologically susceptible, since U.S. civilians were last vaccinated more than 3 d...

Despite the eradication of smallpox several decades ago, variola and monkeypox viruses still have the potential to become significant threats to public health. The current licensed live vaccinia virus-based smallpox vaccine is extremely effective as a prophylactic vaccine to prevent orthopoxvirus infections, but because of safety issues, it is no longer given as a routine vaccine to the general...

Smallpox (variola) virus is considered a Category A bioterrorism agent due to its ability to spread rapidly and the high morbidity and mortality rates associated with infection. Current recommendations recognize the importance of oral antivirals and call for having at least two smallpox antivirals with different mechanisms of action available in the event of a smallpox outbreak. Multiple antivi...

In December 2002, the US Government implemented policy to immunize health workers, first responders, and military personnel against smallpox in preparation for a possible bioterrorist attack. Self-reported vaccination data are commonly used in epidemiologic research and may be used to determine vaccination status in a public health emergency. To establish a measure of reliability, the agreement...