Please induldge me Re: Polio and Small Pox

[Ivan's Mom]

I have looked in the stickies and I really do not have the patience to look anymore :

Just wanted to know the actual reason that Polio and Small Pox are no longer a threat in the USA.

Thanks

:

[alegna]

Polio is very complicated with many many factors, so I will leave that for others.

Smallpox is a unique disease. Unlike nearly any other communicable disease, it is identifiable BEFORE it's contagious. If you put someone in isolation as soon as the rash shows, then they can't infect anyone. Therefore quarantine was very effective in eliminating small pox.

-Angela

[mamakay]

Polio: OVP, not the vax they started with or the vax we use now, IPV.

Smallpox: Isolation and "ring vaccination".

[Marnica]

: to both above posts although most mainsteam medical info will tell you that the vaccine wiped out these diseases. Too bad that is just not true!

[Chamomile Girl]

Smalpox no longer exists as a viable disease as it was eradicated by a strong WHO vaccination campaign in the 1970's. Therefore you don't have to worry about it anywhere in the world (except near certain test-tubes stored "for science" in Russia and the United States).

[Chamomile Girl]

Originally Posted by Marnica

: to both above posts although most mainsteam medical info will tell you that the vaccine wiped out these diseases. Too bad that is just not true!

I'm no lover of vaccination, but it is true that vaccination is what mopped up the remnants of smallpox...especially in crowded countries. My DH is a medical historian and smallpox is his specialty so I hear more about this topic than I care to! MMmmm small pox...isn't this dinner yummy dear?

[alegna]

Originally Posted by Chamomile Girl

I'm no lover of vaccination, but it is true that vaccination is what mopped up the remnants of smallpox...especially in crowded countries. My DH is a medical historian and smallpox is his specialty so I hear more about this topic than I care to! MMmmm small pox...isn't this dinner yummy dear?

I'm not so sure- because worldwide there was never a high enough vax rate to totally eradicate a disease. Smallpox is unique because quarantine, when used strictly, is VERY effective. Combined with ring vaccination, a disease like smallpox can be eradicated.

But because of the unique epidemiology of smallpox, that doesn't translate to other diseases.

-Angela

[Chamomile Girl]

Originally Posted by alegna

I'm not so sure- because worldwide there was never a high enough vax rate to totally eradicate a disease. Smallpox is unique because quarantine, when used strictly, is VERY effective. Combined with ring vaccination, a disease like smallpox can be eradicated.

But because of the unique epidemiology of smallpox, that doesn't translate to other diseases.

-Angela

You are correct in that there was no way to vaccinate the entire population, and that for this reason ring vaccination was utilized (obviously very successfully) instead. But even ring vaccination/isolation required vaccination in order for the disease to be properly contained. My hubbs works primarily on isolation hospitals in London in the 19th century, and there were big problems when isolation was used without vaccination...it simply was not effective enough to control the disease alone.

[mamakay]

Originally Posted by Chamomile Girl

You are correct in that there was no way to vaccinate the entire population, and that for this reason ring vaccination was utilized (obviously very successfully) instead. But even ring vaccination/isolation required vaccination in order for the disease to be properly contained. My hubbs works primarily on isolation hospitals in London in the 19th century, and there were big problems when isolation was used without vaccination...it simply was not effective enough to control the disease alone.

Vaccination alone never did it, and isolation alone didn't work 100% either. It was a combo of ring vaccination and isolation that worked better than mass vaccination.

[Chamomile Girl]

Originally Posted by mamakay

Vaccination alone never did it, and isolation alone didn't work 100% either. It was a combo of ring vaccination and isolation that worked better than mass vaccination.

Right. Exactly. It took both.

Y'know not to hijack this thread but I think its somewhat unfortunate that the use of vaccination for smallpox worked so well, since it set this precedent for diseases that are not so vaccination friendly. It really makes having the non-vax conversation with my DH more...interesting. Polio is another one we go around and around on.

[Juvysen]

There's some evidence that some of the "polio" cases weren't actually polio. Possibly MOST weren't. It's actually, really shocking, to me.

[mamakay]

Originally Posted by Chamomile Girl

Right. Exactly. It took both.

Y'know not to hijack this thread but I think its somewhat unfortunate that the use of vaccination for smallpox worked so well, since it set this precedent for diseases that are not so vaccination friendly. It really makes having the non-vax conversation with my DH more...interesting. Polio is another one we go around and around on.

In a way, you could say it's a good way of demonstrating that selective use of vaccine technology can sometimes be more useful than just blindly vaccinating the masses for anything and everything.