Some questions & answers
About Smallpox

Q:  I already had a smallpox vaccination. Why again?

The vaccination you received as a child only provides about a three-to-five year protection.  This protection needs to be updated. You will need to renew that protection.

Q:  What are the symptoms of smallpox?

There are usually no symptoms for up to two weeks, after a person is exposed to the virus. Then the person develops a high fever, experiences fatigue, head and body aches, and sometimes begins to vomit.  These symptoms last for two to four days.  Then a rash will break out on the tongue and in the mouth, which spreads to the rest of the body.  The rash covers the body and develops into painful, raised sores that will remain for three to four weeks.  People with smallpox are contagious with the onset of the fever, but they are most contagious once the rash breaks out.

Q:  How long is the victim contagious?

A person with smallpox is contagious until the last scab falls off.

Q:  Can you die from smallpox?

Yes.  In the past, when smallpox was in a “natural” state on the planet, about 30 percent of the people who contracted it died.  Death from smallpox usually occurs during the second week, as a result of blood poisoning.

Q:  Isn’t there treatment for smallpox?

No.  We have better ways of monitoring patients, and decreasing their discomfort and side effects, but basically the disease must run its course.  Smallpox survivors face permanent scarring, and possibly blindness.

Q:  Why isn’t the smallpox virus still “wild” in the world?

Health professionals eradicated smallpox from the U.S. in 1949 and from the world in 1972.  They did this through a rigorous vaccination program, and by isolating people with smallpox.  Identifying and isolating people who have been in contact with an infected person (called a “ring” vaccination) also helped stamp out smallpox.

Q:  How is the vaccine given?

A two-pronged needle is dipped into the vaccine solution, once.  The needle is then quickly used to prick the skin, on the upper arm, 15 times in the space of a few seconds.  It is different from other vaccines in that the needle does not penetrate below the top layer of skin.  It’s more like quickly scratching the arm. 

Q:  Is the vaccine contagious?

No.  The vaccine does not contain smallpox virus, so it cannot spread or cause the disease.  It can present other problems, though.  The vaccine is a live virus, named vaccinia, which can be spread to other parts of the body, or other people.  This risk is reduced when the vaccination site is carefully covered with bandages, until the blister heals.

Q:  Why are just a few Alaskans being protected from smallpox, right now?

Currently, the medical risks from the vaccine are greater than the risk of contracting smallpox.  This means that unless there is a proven case of smallpox (somewhere in the world) that your possible side effects are more serious then the chance of you contracting smallpox.  A simple risk equation.  Federal guidelines are calling for voluntary preventative vaccinations of health professionals, who will in turn safely vaccinate others, in the event of a smallpox outbreak.  Most medical professionals agree that individuals who are vaccinated within four-to-five days of an outbreak will be protected against smallpox (providing the vaccination “took” or was effective.) 

Q:  Will the vaccine be mandatory if it’s made available to the public?

No.  Even if we experienced a biological attack, we would not force individuals to receive a smallpox vaccination.  There are general discussions about quarantining people who refuse to be vaccinated in the event of an attack, for their safety, and so they wouldn’t be spreading the disease to others.  The federal government is considering making the vaccine available to the general public in 2004, and in that is the case each person would have to weigh the risks versus the benefits individually at that time.