Weighing the Risks of Mass Vaccinations Oct 1, 2009
According to Jacob Weisberg's book The Bush Tragedy, President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney were split in 2002 over whether to administer a nationwide smallpox vaccination program in the U.S. Cheney argued that doing so would be a prudent counterterrorism step ... (Statistical analysis has shown that the smallpox vaccine kills between one and two people per million inoculated ... This has been the case since the first vaccinations were given to prevent a spread of smallpox in... (Time.com)
Time will show impact of swine flu vaccine Sep 26, 2009
For example, the British started forced vaccinations for smallpox in 1854. Deaths from smallpox immediately jumped from 1,000 per year to 10,000 per year and peaked in 1871 to over 40,000 per year and only started to go down from that point because honest doctors stopped giving the vaccine to their patients ... Great Britain stopped forced smallpox vaccinations in 1907 and by 1919 only had 29 deaths from smallpox. (The Pantagraph newspaper)
Could Swine Flu Panic Be Worse Than Outbreak Itself? Sep 23, 2009
There were the post-9/11 anthrax attacks, fueling the public's fear that terrorists would unleash deadly smallpox germs on the population. "People were stockpiling antibiotics. It didn't really result in a shortage, but it could have," said Dr. Dean Blumberg, associate professor of pediatric infectious diseases at the University of California, Davis Children's Hospital. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Health)
How To Improve Vaccines To Trigger T Cell As Well As Antibody Response Sep 19, 2009
18, 2009) Killed or disabled viruses have proven safe and effective for vaccinating billions worldwide against smallpox, polio, measles, influenza and many other diseases. See also. (Science Daily)
Colleges Battle to Contain H1N1 Virus Sep 6, 2009
Most people under age 40 did not get a smallpox vaccination as the WHO recalled all of the vaccine except for some military use in the early 1970's. Back when the vaccine was used, some people refused to be vaccinated and in many cases the vaccinations did not "take." So, I would like for some university or other agency to check to see how many swine flu victims over age 40 got a successful smallpox vaccination ... Most HIV/AIDS victims did not get a smallpox vaccination. (CBS News)
More than 2,000 sick with swine flu at WSU Sep 5, 2009
"The side effects of the vaccine were more dangerous than the disease itself, Schwartz said. I think we're faced with the same thing today." " country gal wrote on Sep 4, 2009 5:16 PM:" mole: smallpox, bubonic, polio, asian, aids and there's more that I can't think of right off the bat. But MOLE, do you believe and trust anything that our 'politicians' tells us. (Longview Daily News, WA)
Farmer: Vaccination vital in fighting H1N1 Aug 30, 2009
Most of us past the age of 50 bear a scar on our shoulder from receiving the smallpox vaccine when we were young. Smallpox was eliminated from the face of the Earth in 1980, and the individual price we each paid to eliminate this killer now seems quite small. (Athens Banner-Herald)
Science Fair Aug 29, 2009
It could be the first parasitic disease eradicated, and only the second disease to be eradicated in the world, since smallpox in 1979. (Olivier Asselin). (USA Today -- Tech)
Back to school public immunization clinic August 28 in North Branch Aug 28, 2009
Vaccines have eradicated smallpox, eliminated wild poliovirus in the United States, and significantly reduced the number of cases of measles, diphtheria, rubella, pertussis and other diseases. But despite these efforts, people in the U.S. still die from these and other vaccine-preventable diseases. (Lindstrom Chisago County Press, MN)
First Genetically-engineered Malaria Vaccine To Enter Human Trials Aug 25, 2009
This approach to vaccine development using a weakened form of the whole organism that causes a particular disease has proven successful in eradicating smallpox and controlling diseases such as flu and polio. Professor Cowman said the research team, which includes Dr Matthew O'Neill and Dr Alex Maier from the institute as well as scientists from the Seattle Biomedical Research Institute, the Walter Reed Army Institute for Research and the University of Maryland, had used knowledge from several... (Science Daily)
Cambridge biologist begins training as astronaut candidate Aug 24, 2009
In high school, worried that becoming an astronaut wasn t a realistic career path, she delved into biology so she could become a better peer educator about HIV. At the University of California, San Diego, and later at Stanford University, she pursued virology, joining a select group studying smallpox in labs at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That led her to the Congo and monkeypox, from the same family of viruses, whose spread among people is aggravated by poverty, civil war,... (Boston Globe)
Here comes more government health care Aug 24, 2009
Although more people have been inoculated against diseases such as smallpox and polio over a period of years, the United States has never tried to immunize so many so quickly. But even as scientists rush to test the vaccine to ensure it is safe and effective, the campaign is lagging. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Opinion)
U.S. preps for vast swineflu vaccine effort Aug 23, 2009
Although more people have been inoculated against diseases such as smallpox and polio over a period of years, the United States has never tried to immunize so many so quickly ... "There is no national security threat here. Why are we operating like this? This is not polio. This is not smallpox.". (MSNBC -- Health)
UPMC wants to make vaccines Aug 22, 2009
The 21CB would operated as a not-for-profit facility under HHS supervision, and could produce vaccines for anthrax, smallpox, the plague, ricin contamination and the Ebola virus, among other threatening infections. Under a previous government contract, UPMC already has studied solutions to combating bioterrorism. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA)
7 Diseases We'd Forgotten-- Until They Returned Aug 15, 2009
Smallpox was the first disease for which a vaccine was developed ... But replicating the success of the smallpox effort with any other disease has yet to happen ... "There are a number of diseases about which we hear very little in this country but prospects for actually eliminating/eradicating any of them are slim," said Dr. D. A. Henderson, author of "Smallpox: the Death of a Disease," who led the WHO's initiative to eradicate the virus. (ABC News)
Predicting disease Aug 9, 2009
I have enormous faith in science - one of the high points in virology, if not the discipline's crowning achievement, was the eradication of smallpox from the world ... Understandably, once smallpox was eradicated some of the scientific community may have begun to believe that they could perhaps conquer all pandemic disease given time ... But in retrospect, smallpox was the ideal candidate for eradication. (BBC News)
Los Alamos lab works to quicken disease monitoring Aug 6, 2009
Numerous diseases have jumped from animals to humans anthrax, hemorrhaggic fevers, West Nile virus, smallpox, malaria, tuberculosis. Researchers expect the rate to increase. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Science)
Tiny Device To Sniff Out Disease, Poison Aug 4, 2009
7, 2008) A powerful sensor that can detect airborne pathogens such as anthrax and smallpox in less than three minutes has been developed. Current sensors take at least 20 minutes to detect harmful bacteria or. (Science Daily)
Betsy Wadland: Shots are for your own good Aug 4, 2009
According to the Centers for Disease Control, "Immunization is one of the most significant public health achievements of the 20th century. Vaccines have eradicated smallpox, eliminated wild poliovirus in the United States and significantly reduced the number of cases of measles, diphtheria, rubella, pertussis and other diseases.". Registered Nurse Jean Sniffin says that "most childhood vaccines are 90 percent to 99 percent effective, and it's important for children to get their immunizations... (Belmont Citizen Herald, MA)
Malaria likely originated in chimpanzees Aug 4, 2009
A better understanding of these chimp parasites might lead to improved treatments for malaria or even development of a vaccine, Wolfe said, noting early smallpox vaccines were developed from the related cowpox. The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health, Tufts University and the National Geographic Society. (MSNBC -- Health)
Frankenstein's Folly Aug 2, 2009
Smallpox and tuberculosis once ravaged the globe, killing millionsnow they are controlled by the miracle of vaccine. Bionic technology allows amputees to reclaim independence and dignity, and surgeons are now able to treat birth defects like spina bifida by on infants while they are still in their mother's womb. (Townhall.com)
Not enough Bay Area kids vaccinated, docs say Aug 2, 2009
Since the first vaccines became available, diseases like polio and smallpox have disappeared in the United States. Pertussis, or whooping cough, still infects thousands of people every year and measles shows up in small outbreaks from time to time, but rates of both have fallen off dramatically. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Health Happenings Jul 29, 2009
Vaccines have eradicated smallpox, eliminated wild polio virus in the U.S. and significantly reduced the number of cases of measles, diphtheria, rubella, pertussis and other diseases. But despite these efforts, today tens of thousands of people in the U.S. still die from these and other vaccine-preventable diseases. (Mattoon Journal-Gazette, IL)
Vi Typhoid Vaccine Proves Highly Effective In Young Children, Study Suggests Jul 29, 2009
17, 2009) Administration of a tissue-cultured smallpox vaccine showed signs of an effective vaccine response with no serious adverse events, according to a new. . (Science Daily)
Early Detection And Quick Response Are Key To Defense Against Anthrax Attack Jul 27, 2009
27, 2004) University of South Florida microbiologists have developed tests that can rapidly identify anthrax and smallpox. Used in the field in the event of a suspected bioterror attack, positive rapid testing. (Science Daily)
Reasons for Vaccination Jul 16, 2009
In the 1970s, a vaccination, or immunization, push by world health authorities and workers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eradicated smallpox from the human population ... Despite popular belief, only smallpox has ever been eradicated. (Suite101.com)
Protecting against Future Shock — Inhalational Anthrax Jul 9, 2009
The deliberate release of anthrax spores on unsuspecting U.S. citizens in the wake of September 11 unsettled Americans who were already concerned about the weaponization of smallpox, Ebola and Marburg viruses, and other pathogens. The subsequent arrival of the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus, together with the recent swine influenza epidemic, has further underscored our vulnerability to infectious diseases, both deliberate and. (New England Journal of Medicine)
Eczema Patients Most At Risk For Dangerous Viral Infections Jun 30, 2009
The findings, published June 22 in the online version of The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, could help identify people at risk for serious complications of smallpox vaccinations, and point to defects in the skin barrier and antimicrobial-protein production as possible causes for the increased susceptibility ... Vaccinia virus, which is used in smallpox vaccinations, can also cause a serious and life-threatening skin infections in a smaller subset of patients ... People who have... (Science Daily)
Henderson led WHO's effort to rid the world of smallpox Jun 30, 2009
In Baltimore: D.A. Henderson led the successful effort to eradicate smallpox for the World Health Organization 30 years ago ... 1796: First smallpox vaccine made by English doctor Edward Jenner, using cowpox virus ... 1977: World's last natural case of smallpox found in Somalia. (USA Today)
* Thinking beyond the threat of new pandemic bugs Jun 19, 2009
Just as we once eliminated smallpox, so can we eliminate others. It also bears remembering that 60 percent of the worlds population dies of non-communicable illnesses such as cancer or heart disease. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- Business)
Fairbanks dedicates new virology laboratory Jun 17, 2009
The room lets scientists study diseases such as smallpox, labeled by the World Health Organization as one of the most devastating diseases known to humanity. Smallpox was eradicated in the late 1970s, but samples were kept and it emerged as a bioterrorism concern in the aftermath of the 2001 terrorist attacks. (Juneau Empire)
When Silence Becomes Death Jun 1, 2009
One thing about history is that it repeats itself and so before we proceed with this issue let's ask ourselves if this form of genocide has ever happened before and the answer is yes, but in this case it was the native Americans who were wiped out in huge numbers when the Europeans brought infectious diseases like Smallpox, Malaria, Measles and influenza with them. The irony about this is whole affair is that whilst the native Americans were dying in huge numbers no life was lost on the side of... (Ghana Web, Ghana)
New book explores eradication of smallpox Jun 1, 2009
UPMC researcher's book explores eradication of smallpox ... When epidemiologist D.A. Henderson wanted to visit a health care center in rural East Pakistan to discuss smallpox eradication in 1971, he had two options: travel with a military escort and risk a rebel attack, or drive on an unpaved road laced with land mines ... In a new book slated for release tomorrow, Dr. Henderson, who, as head of the World Health Organization's smallpox eradication unit, led the global effort to eliminate the... (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA)
Mystery Of Potentially Fatal Reaction To Smallpox Vaccine Solved May 26, 2009
ScienceDaily (May 25, 2009) Researchers from the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology have pinpointed the cellular defect that increases the likelihood, among eczema sufferers, of developing eczema vaccinatum, a severe and potentially fatal reaction to the smallpox vaccine ... The network is working toward the development of a new smallpox vaccine that could be administered to the millions of Americans who suffer from atopic dermatitis, a chronic, itchy skin condition commonly referred to... (Science Daily)
La Jolla Institute unlocks mystery of potentially fatal reaction to smallpox vaccine May 25, 2009
Research team is part of NIH network working toward new smallpox vaccine for eczema sufferers. SAN DIEGO (May 25, 2009) Researchers from the La Jolla Institute for Allergy ology have pinpointed the cellular defect that increases the likelihood, among eczema sufferers, of developing eczema vaccinatum, a severe and potentially fatal reaction to the smallpox vaccine ... The network is working toward the development of a new smallpox vaccine that could be administered to the millions of Americans... (EurekAlert!)
Naturopathic college buys building in Tempe for clinic May 23, 2009
The college is conducting joint research with the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University, studying a plant that could stop smallpox if the virus is used as a bioterrorist threat. The research is for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. (Phoenix Business Journal, AZ)
New AIDS approach looks to outflank virus May 19, 2009
This model has worked for diseases such as measles and smallpox. It hasn't done as well with HIV/AIDS; test vaccines have failed to produce a protective reaction. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Wilmington ready for MWRA water May 14, 2009
The plan, for example, designates emergency dispensing sites where residents could be quickly inoculated against various threats including smallpox, anthrax, the swine flu if a vaccine existed and more. We could vaccinate the entire community in 24-48 hours, said Newhouse. (Wilmington Advocate, MA)
Scientists discover how smallpox may derail human immune system May 12, 2009
University of Florida researchers have learned more about how smallpox conducts its deadly business discoveries that may reveal as much about the human immune system as they do about one of the world's most feared pathogens. In findings to be published this week in the online early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, scientists describe how they looked at all of the proteins produced by the smallpox virus in concert with human proteins, and discovered one particular... (EurekAlert!)
The last speaker: UND to honor Mandan, last to speak Nu'eta as 1st language May 11, 2009
Two devastating smallpox outbreaks nearly wiped the tribe out, the last epidemic occurring in 1837. Thousands of Mandan died, reducing the tribe to about 125 people. (Missoulian, MT)
CARE President and CEO Helene Gayle Challenges Agnes Scott Graduates May 10, 2009
"On the forefront of the campaign to eradicate smallpox, Dr. Henderson was fighting a disease that since the time of the pharaohs had taken more than 500 million lives. "So for nearly 30 years -- first at the CDC, then at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and now at CARE, I've been at the forefront of the battle against AIDs," Gayle said. "We are at a time in history when the world is looking for authentic leadership. We are also at that point when old paradigms of leadership are being... (PR Newswire)
From Rats To Humans: Around Thirty Europeans Infected With Cowpox Virus By Their Pet Rats May 9, 2009
It belongs to the same family (Poxviridae) as the now extinct smallpox virus, and is potentially pathogenic in humans. It becomes apparent as a viral infection after a period of incubation of about one week. (Science Daily)
No swine flu cases reported in Greene Co. May 8, 2009
After 9/11, we began planning for emergency preparedness, starting with anthrax, then smallpox, SARS and then pandemics. We have been training for this, and we started in that mode on April 26. (Catskill Daily Mail, NY)
Auto hazard lights can avert catastrophe May 8, 2009
Among these are such infamous killers as AIDS, bubonic plague, cholera, diphthe ria, ebola and dengue fever, measles, SARS, smallpox, West Nile virus and yellow fever. Every one of us can help prevent the development and spread of these killer diseases by replac ing animal products in our diet with healthful vegetables, fresh fruits and whole grains. (NJ.com -- Times)
Trust for America's Health on Nomination of Tara O'Toole for Under Secretary for Science and Technology at the Department of Homeland Security May 8, 2009
"Tara O'Toole is a renowned and highly recognized international expert on biodefense and public health preparedness. She will be a major asset as the Under Secretary for Science and Technology at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, bringing a range and depth of experience to the position. In her work as Assistant Secretary of Energy for Environment Safety and Health during the Clinton Administration, she helped protect Americans from environmental threats to health. At the Johns Hopkins... (PR Newswire)
Ask the pilot May 8, 2009
Site Presented By Friday, May 8, 2009. From swine flu to malaria, how jetliners can spread disease. (Salon)
WOMAN'S 'FLU-LIKE SYMPTOMS' DIVERT FLIGHT May 2, 2009
This is blown out of proportion - come on, it's not smallpox or Ebola. Hysteria all the way. (The Drudge Report)
How to Deal with Swine Flu: Heeding the Mistakes of 1976 May 2, 2009
But according to reports, President George W. Bush decided in 2002 not to administer a nationwide smallpox vaccination program despite Vice President Dick Cheney's belief that doing so was a prudent counterterrorism step because it could have resulted in dozens of deaths (the smallpox vaccine kills between 1 and 2 people per million people inoculated). Markel says the political climate in the U.S. is much less combustible today than in the post-Watergate era, when Ford faced a skeptical public. (Time.com)
Right Flu, Wrong Swine May 1, 2009
One of the major reasons that the United States exists to decry the diseased minions of other countries that are spreading death across its borders is because diseased Europeans wiped out millions of people native to the land with a combination of gunpowder and smallpox. Posted: Thursday, April 30, 2009. (Slate)
Quarantine decisionwill be left to locals Apr 29, 2009
In a computer simulation of a smallpox epidemic, even a compliance rate of 50 percent was enough to beat back the disease, Garrett says. A quarantine isnt going to stop all transmission, but it can slow the disease down enough to interfere with its natural history so that it fizzles out on its own or it can give you time to get medication like antivirals to people who need them. (MSNBC -- Health)
Swine Flu and the Mexico Mystery Apr 28, 2009
This isn't like the smallpox situation of 500 years ago, when American Indians were decimated by a virus they'd never encountered while Europeans carried it easily because centuries of exposure had selected them for resistance. This strain of swine flu virus is apparently new to everyonea combination of bird flu, seasonal human flu, and (predominantly) two kinds of swine flu, all in a form our bodies have never seen. (Slate)
Norwell column: Locals answer the call in the Civil War, Part III Apr 28, 2009
More haunting are photographs of young men, some barely out of their teens, staring straight ahead into the camera to ensure that their families had their likeness in the event they might meet death on some Southern battlefield, or, less gloriously die in a field hospital from some infectious disease such as measles, or smallpox, or from dysentery. that often swept uncontrollably through the army encampments. (Norwell Mariner, MA)
Outbreaks vs. Epidemics Apr 28, 2009
In fact, until this recent situation, the CDC hadn't issued such an order since 1963, when it quarantined a woman for smallpox exposure. Even during the SARS epidemic in 2003, officials relied mostly on voluntary isolation and quarantine. (Slate)
If Anyone Can Help the World Defeat Swine Flu, She Can Apr 28, 2009
WHO is the organization we all turn to at times like this, and rightly so: With more than 60 years' experience and real achievements under its beltit led the successful campaign to eliminate smallpox in the 1970sWHO may well be the only international organization that we genuinely cannot live without. When infectious diseases spread rapidly across borders, WHO is expected to coordinate the scientific response of national public-health officials from France to Malaysia, as well as the... (Slate)
Jefferson Birthday Should Be Holiday Apr 14, 2009
Unlike later Canadians and Americans who deliberately gave Indians blankets infected with deadly smallpox, Jefferson the scientist sent the same early smallpox vaccine given to his family along with Lewis and Clark in an effort to protect the Indians they met from this white man's disease. From his scientific analysis of Native American language and appearance, he was the first to deduce that their ancestors probably had migrated from Asia. (Newsmax)
Newfoundland Doctor Began Smallpox ... Apr 14, 2009
Newfoundland Doctor Began Smallpox Vaccinations: Reverend Dr. John Clinch Vaccinated Against Virus in 1800 ... Newfoundland Doctor Began Smallpox Vaccinations ... Newfoundland Doctor Began Smallpox Vaccinations. (Suite101.com)
UW-L class tackles global impact of diseases Apr 11, 2009
They ve heard of the Revolutionary War, but not about how George Washington would have managed his army knowing smallpox was a threat. Students see the differences between how the developing world and the developed world handle infectious disease. (La Crosse Tribune, WI)
Prevention sparks real health reform Apr 10, 2009
Thanks to public health measures such as immunizations, smallpox, measles and typhoid are not part of our daily lives. Today, the primary and preventable causes of disability and death are tobacco use and obesity. (Anchorage Daily News)
Things to Remember: Smallpox Apr 2, 2009
It is difficult to realize that Smallpox was once prevalent, nor can we realize the fear it created. Lexington was visited by this dread disease in 1702, 1722, 1728, 1730, 1792, and 1824. (Lexington Minuteman, MA)
Fauci: Why there is still no AIDS vaccine Apr 1, 2009
One viral infection smallpox has been completely eradicated from the human population ... Since it is possible that an HIV vaccine alone will never fully prevent HIV infection the way smallpox or polio vaccines can, our efforts in HIV vaccinology must be part of a broader approach toward HIV prevention that includes the delivery of proven methods such as HIV testing and counseling, , the use of condoms, the treatment and prevention of drug and alcohol abuse, syringe exchange programs,... (MSNBC -- Health)
Superbug risk to war wounded Mar 30, 2009
Dr Clinton K. Murray, from Brooke Army Medical Center, USA, told the Society for General Microbiology Meeting at the International Centre, Harrogate, that at the beginning of the 20th century improved military hygiene and disease control led to a steady decline in the number of wartime deaths attributable to infections classically known as "war pestilence," which included cholera, dysentery, plague, smallpox, typhoid, and typhus fever. "The development of more effective personal protective... (EurekAlert!)
Experimental Ebola Vaccine Used On Human Mar 28, 2009
Edward Jenner, the English physician who first invented a smallpox vaccine, included his own son among the children he first gave the immunization. And Jonas Salk, an inventor of polio vaccine, reportedly gave the vaccine to himself and his entire family before making it public. (CBS News)
Africa: Rio Conference Hopes to Raise Awareness of TB Mar 23, 2009
6-million died annually of TB while 813 have died of SARS, 254 due to avian influenza , 5 due to anthrax and non due to smallpox. "The difference is that people get excited about these diseases, but not TB," said Reichman. (allAfrica.com)
Tracing anthrax's American roots Mar 16, 2009
The introduction of cattle by Spaniards, and trade with Europe that started in the 1600s have often been pointed to as the start of the disease in North America, part of a wave of Old World diseases, such as the smallpox thought to have killed millions in the colonial era. Call it a case of archaeology by biology. (USA Today -- Tech)
Drug developed in Corvallis lab stands ready to fight smallpox Mar 11, 2009
A drug scientists hope will never be used stands ready to treat smallpox Wednesday, March 11, 2009 DON COLBURN The Oregonian Staff ... The drug would treat smallpox, an ancient scourge eradicated by global vaccination ... The last case of smallpox in the United States occurred in 1949; the last worldwide, in Somalia in 1977. (OregonLive, OR -- News)
