Word: smallpox
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...years, we believed we had. A worldwide eradication program had been so successful that in 1972 health care providers felt safe removing the vaccine from the list of childhood vaccinations. The last naturally occurring case of smallpox in the U.S. was recorded in 1949, worldwide, in Somalia in 1979. In the last 15 years, however, officials have become aware of a bioterrorism threat from countries, including Iraq, believed to have kept samples of the virus...
...start the vaccinations now? Is there a specific threat of smallpox...
...President Bush insists there are no direct threats against the U.S. involving smallpox. However, Iraq is believed to have stockpiles of the virus, and the administration believes the public should be informed of and vaccinated against any possible threat that might stem from a war against Iraq or its allies...
...eventually all Americans will be offered the vaccine. It will not be mandatory; each person or family will decide who will get the vaccine. It is important for everyone to weight the risks of the vaccine against the risk of a bioterror attack using smallpox...
...Unlike many other vaccines, smallpox contains live virus. A doctor or nurse takes a pronged instrument, dips it into the virus and gives the patient several pricks, usually on the upper arm, with the contaminated prongs. The result is a circular sore, which initially becomes filled with pus and eventually drains and scabs over. Within two weeks, the sore is gone and only a small scar remains. During the time that the sore is infected, the patient is contagious to others and should keep the vaccination site covered. Some people will experience soreness, fever, head and body aches after...