The Nuisance Disease Which Ultimately Saved Untold Thousands Of Lives
Posted: Monday, February 21, 2011
by Joel Hendon
http://hebronics.org/index.html
We have been fortunate to live during an era of exploding scientific and medical advances.
Those of us who have lived for some four score years have actually seen the development of many advances which appeared almost miraculous. As knowledge multiplied and was compiled, trial instrumentation was developed, man began to find ways to protect himself and others from certain illnesses and as well as finding cures for many others. It was a blessing, each time they overcame some severe health problems.
On the other hand, the Variola major had a 30-35% mortality rate. It also produced more and much larger blister like pustules over the entire body. It even caused blindness in some due to the corneal ulceration and resultant scarring of the eye. It also left permanent unsightly scars on much of the body, especially on the face in 65-85% of those who survived. Although not as deadly as the infamous black plague, it is estimated that it killed 400,000 Europeans per year in the closing years of the eighteenth century. (Bangladesh child with Smallpox--photo from Wikioedia)
But an unexpected extreme blessing came along. There also existed a disease among cows, which is now known to be related to the Small poxes. It was mild and did little harm but cause pustules on cows udders, and it was transferable to humans. It resembled a very mild case of Smallpox, but was never feared by anyone because of the lack of severity.
During the enormous near epidemic proportions of Smallpox in the late eighteenth century, it began to be noticed that those farmers or cattle owners who had contracted the cow pox, never did catch the Smallpox! This caused doctors and scientists to work towards a cure for smallpox and resulted in the very first ever, successful vaccine attempt. A physician, Dr. Edward Jenner, created a vaccine which created an immunity in humans to the dreaded Smallpox virus.
Much more work and refining took place over the years and more and more progress was made against the world’s curse of Small pox.
After vaccination campaigns throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, the WHO certified the eradication of smallpox in 1979. Smallpox is one of the two infectious diseases to have been eradicated, the other being rinderpest, which was unofficially declared eradicated in 2010 (Wikipedia)
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Top-level comments on this article: (1 total)That poor child. I didn't realize smallpox was only eradicated in 1979. I'm so grateful I never got it.Hi Jennifer, thanks for the comment. Oh, the Smallpox was gone long before that, in fact had not been in the United States for many years before that. I believe there had not been a known case of it since about 1940 or so and that was in the third world nations.. The UN just wanted to be sure it was totally gone, before they declared it.
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