Transcript Smallpox (Variola)

Smallpox
(Variola)
Jen Swank, Jason Rodrigue, Anthony
Worm
Overview
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Virus, therefore no cure
Infectious and contagious
Originally called the “Red Plague”
Later called “Small Pox” to distinguish from the “Great
Pox” (Syphilis)
Vaccine available
Humans are only known natural hosts
Declared eradicated
The name comes from “pox” the Latin word for “spotted”
Many forms
• Majora, Minora, Flat, Hemorrhagic
• Related to Cowpox and Chickenpox
History
• Major epidemic during the Renaissance.
– Mainly from the 15th to the 18th c.
– 1440’s – Killed more people in France than the plague
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Vaccination method discovered - 1796
Last reported case in US – 1949
Last natural reported world case – Somalia 1977
Declared Eradicated in 1980
– Nations still have stocks of it however
Causes, Spreading, & Symptoms
• Caused by virus, therefore not curable
• Patients become immune after recovery, so vaccination is
possible
• Highly Contagious
– Spread as aerosol through tiny droplets discharged from mouth and
nose
– Bodily fluids and discharge
• 1-2 week incubation period. (not contagious)
1st Stage (~days 1-7)
• High fever (101-104°F), back
and muscle pains, and vomiting
occur before breakout.
(2-4 days)
• Small red spots surface.
– Start on palms and bottom of
feet
– (4 days)
• Person is contagious
• Fever falls and rash spot turn
into raised bumps (BB size)
• Bumps fill with thick puss.
Called pustules
2nd Stage (~days 8-15)
• Fever returns
• Bacteria begins to
infect the pustules
(5 days)
• Pustules can combine
• Most deadly stage
• Pustules begin to scab
(5 days)
Recovery (week 3)
• Pustules continue to scab
and begin to fall off (6
days)
• Scars remain where
pustules were
• Most gone after 3 weeks
• Person still contagious
until all pustules have
fallen off
• Person develops long-term
immunity to virus
Casualties
• The pocks do not kill the patient
• Death is caused by secondary infection
– Lung, heart, and brain especially
• Most deaths occur during 2nd week
Case Type
Virus
Mortality Rate
Mild
Variloa Minora
~1 %
Severe
Variloa Majora
~25-30 %
Variloa Majora
Rare & Usually
Fatal
Flat & Hemorrhagic
Treatment
• Only treatment is vaccination
• Feasible vaccine developed in
1796 by Edward Jenner.
• Heard that people infected with
Cowpox did not catch Smallpox
• Cowpox is minor disease
caused by a different virus that
causes only minor irritation
• 1st vaccination performed on 8
year old James Phipps from a
cowpox lymph
Sources
• Center for Disease Control and Prevention
www.bt.cdc.gov
• La Belle Compagnie Inc. www.labelle.org
• UCLA online library
http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/biomed
/smallpox/
• World Health Organization www.who.int/en