Smallpox Vaccination Effective For Decades, Study Suggests
Sunday, November 30, 2008 - 21:35
in Health & Medicine
There is concern that bioterrorists might obtain smallpox from a laboratory and release it into the population. However researchers found that lifetime protection is obtained from just one vaccination, even when that vaccination occurred as much as 88 years ago. They conclude that in the event of a smallpox bioterrorist attack, vaccinia smallpox vaccine should be used first on individuals who have not been vaccinated previously.