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Smallpox:
What is it, and am I at risk?
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Smallpox,
or variola major, is a particularly contagious airborne virus.
The most distinct characteristic of infected individuals is the presence
of numerous, painful boils on their entire body. One third of smallpox
victims die, and survivors are disfigured for life.
Before the introduction of a vaccine in the late 18th century, smallpox
was a major cause of death worldwide. Routine vaccination for smallpox
was stopped in 1980, when it was declared eradicated by the World
Health Organization (Muraskin 172). |
Because there are no more live smallpox pathogens beside those kept at the
Center for Disease Control (CDC), Atlanta, Georgia, and The Scientific and
Production Association (NPO), Novosibirsk, Russia, unvaccinated individuals
are not at risk.
Recent bioterrorist
attacts have prompted
concerns regarding the potential effects of release of the pathogens stored
in the CDC. Such an act would be disastrous. If they were released in a
major city as an inhalable aerosol, tens of thousands of people would be
infected in just a few days; millions would be infected within a week. Many
of these individuals would die, because, although there is an effective
preventative vaccine, there is no current smallpox cure (Haney). |
