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Smallpox vaccine. The smallpox vaccine is the first vaccine to have been developed against a contagious disease. In 1796, British physician Edward Jenner demonstrated that an infection with the relatively mild cowpox virus conferred immunity against the deadly smallpox virus.
Smallpox vaccination can protect you from smallpox for about 3 to 5 years. After that time, its ability to protect you decreases. If you need long-term protection, you may need to get a booster vaccination. Find out who should get smallpox vaccine.
Mandatory smallpox vaccination came into effect in Britain and parts of the United States of America in the 1840s and 1850s, as well as in other parts of the world, leading to the establishment of the smallpox vaccination certificates required for travel.
Apr 6, 2024 · Smallpox vaccine, preparation of vaccinia virus given to prevent smallpox. Vaccinia virus is a type of poxvirus that is closely related to variola major, the virus that causes smallpox. The smallpox vaccine is effective in preventing infection in about 95 percent of individuals.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
To stay protected from smallpox, you should get booster vaccinations every 3 years. When there IS a smallpox outbreak, you should get the smallpox vaccine if you are directly exposed to smallpox virus. For example, if you had a prolonged face-to-face contact with someone who has smallpox.
The smallpox vaccine, introduced by Edward Jenner in 1796, was the first successful vaccine to be developed. He observed that milkmaids who previously had caught cowpox did not catch smallpox and showed that inoculated vaccinia protected against inoculated variola virus.
May 19, 2020 · What is the smallpox vaccine and how is it made? The smallpox vaccine is made using a poxvirus that infects cows (cowpox). Cowpox causes disease in cows, but it rarely causes disease in humans. Because cowpox and human smallpox are similar, infection with cowpox can protect people against smallpox.
