Smallpox vaccination program australia

Although this is believed to be unlikely, planning for such an eventuality has commenced worldwide. In Australia, a small amount of smallpox vaccine is available for essential medical personnel and contacts in the case of an outbreak.

Immunisation has saved more lives this century than any other medical discovery, including antibiotics. Many infectious diseases have been contained by immunisation programs. For instance, cases of invasive haemophilus influenzae b Hib disease in Victoria have declined by more than 90 per cent since vaccination was introduced in Immunisation programs are one of the cheapest and most effective preventative measures against many infectious diseases.

The immunisations you may need are decided by your health, age, lifestyle and occupation. Together, these factors are referred to as HALO. HALO is defined as:. This page has been produced in consultation with and approved by:. Anthrax is a rare but potentially fatal bacterial disease that occasionally infects humans.

The Western obsession with cleanliness may be partly responsible for the increase in allergic asthma and conditions such as rhinitis. Careful prescribing of antibiotics will minimise the emergence of antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria. Aspergillus is a fungus that commonly grows on rotting vegetation. It can cause asthma symptoms.

The simplest form of prevention for lyssavirus is to avoid close contact with bats. Content on this website is provided for information purposes only. Information about a therapy, service, product or treatment does not in any way endorse or support such therapy, service, product or treatment and is not intended to replace advice from your doctor or other registered health professional.

Smallpox spread across the country with the advance of European settlement, bringing with it shocking death rates. The disease affected entire generations of the First Nations populations and survivors were in many cases left without family or community leaders.

The spread of smallpox was followed by influenza, measles, tuberculosis and sexually transmitted diseases. First Nations peoples had no resistance to these diseases, all of which brought widespread death.

No cure for smallpox has ever been found, but in the English doctor Edward Jenner decided to test the countryside belief that milkmaids who had contracted the relatively mild disease, cowpox, were immune to smallpox. The last smallpox case in Australia was identified during the First World War.

However, smallpox continued to flourish around the world, particularly in poorer countries without access to the vaccine. It was only in that the World Health Organization WHO eradicated smallpox in what is widely held to be the greatest public health achievement in the history of the world. The National Museum of Australia acknowledges First Australians and recognises their continuous connection to country, community and culture.

Defining Moments Smallpox epidemic. See our classroom resource. Smallpox Smallpox is one of the most virulent and deadly diseases to have afflicted humanity.

The smallpox virus. Variolation was then used across western Europe. Arrival of smallpox in Sydney In April , 15 months after the First Fleet arrived to establish a penal colony in NSW, a major smallpox epidemic broke out. Effect on First Nations peoples Smallpox spread across the country with the advance of European settlement, bringing with it shocking death rates.

Vaccination and eradication No cure for smallpox has ever been found, but in the English doctor Edward Jenner decided to test the countryside belief that milkmaids who had contracted the relatively mild disease, cowpox, were immune to smallpox. Infection can be confirmed by testing the blister fluid or scabs from the skin rash, or by blood tests that detect antibodies to the virus.

Currently, there is no proven treatment for smallpox. Patients would need supportive management, such as intravenous fluids and medicine to control fever or pain. Severe cases may need intensive care.

Any case of smallpox represents a public health emergency. Doctors, hospitals and laboratories must notify any suspected cases to the local public health unit immediately. Public health unit staff will then advise on the appropriate response. For further information please call your local public health unit on Persons with atopic dermatitis or eczema, irrespective of disease severity or activity, are at risk of developing eczema vaccinatum and should not receive pre-exposure smallpox vaccination.

Persons with incompetent immune systems are at risk of complications following smallpox vaccination. This group includes persons who are immunocompromised due to a specific illness e.

Infants less than one year of age should not be vaccinated because several studies have demonstrated that they are at increased risk of death and other complications. Vaccinia virus may be spread from person-to-person, which means that people who have close contact with recent vaccinees may be exposed to the virus and may be at risk of developing complications.

For this reason, pre-exposure smallpox vaccination is contraindicated in persons who have close contact with individuals who have some of the risk factors described above. Individuals should not be vaccinated if they have close contact with pregnant women or infants. Close contacts include both household members and sexual partners. Eczema vaccinatum and inadvertent inoculation are the most frequently reported conditions in contacts of recent vaccinees.

Twenty percent of the eczema vaccinatum and inadvertent inoculation cases reported in a study occurred in contacts of vaccinees.

Most cases of contact vaccinia occur through direct person-to-person transfer of virus. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices ACIP began serious discussions about the risks and benefits of pre-event smallpox vaccination in At that time, the committee concluded that the risks of vaccination outweighed the benefits in the current pre-event setting except for a very small number of individuals.

However, the ACIP did recommend vaccination for the following groups: persons pre-designated by the appropriate public health authorities to conduct investigation and follow-up of cases; and selected personnel in facilities pre-designated to serve as referral centers to provide care for the initial cases of smallpox.

The ACIP then changed its recommendation again after further discussions with state health agencies and bioterrorism experts. In October , the group stated that suspected smallpox patients are likely to present to hospitals and facilities that provide their usual care, rather than the pre-designated smallpox response facilities. Recommendations published in February state that each acute care hospital should identify a group of health care workers who can be vaccinated and trained to provide care for the first suspected smallpox cases.

The ACIP recommendations also state that previously vaccinated health care workers should be vaccinated whenever possible to decrease the risk of vaccine complications. The current ACIP guidelines provide detailed and useful recommendations regarding the composition of smallpox health care teams, vaccination procedures, prevention of contact transmission and contraindications to pre-event vaccination.

The concept of limited pre-event vaccination is supported by a recently published policy model that evaluated the impact of different smallpox attack scenarios.

The models suggest that pre-event vaccination of health care workers will yield a net reduction in fatalities unless the risk of an attack is very low. If the model assumptions are valid, pre-event vaccination of health care workers would save lives if the probability of attack is greater than. The federal government has indicated that voluntary vaccination of the general public may be approved after health care workers and first responders have been vaccinated.

Increasing the number of vaccinated persons will inevitably lead to increases in morbidity and mortality due to vaccinia, and current evidence suggests net harm would result if smallpox vaccine were made available to the general public on a voluntary basis.

If this complex public health decision is delegated to individual citizens, some individuals will be unable to weigh the risks and benefits for true informed consent. The title of this article refers to the good, bad and ugly of smallpox vaccine. We hope that our great-grandchildren will be oblivious to this concern after many years have passed without the reemergence of this deadly disease. Edward A. Allison L. National Center for Biotechnology Information , U. Journal List Clin Med Res v.

Clin Med Res. Belongia , MD and Allison L. Naleway , PhD. Author information Article notes Copyright and License information Disclaimer. Received Feb 6; Accepted Mar 4. This article has been cited by other articles in PMC. Abstract Smallpox inarguably shaped the course of human history by killing countless millions in both the Old World and the New World.

Keywords: Smallpox, Vaccine, Vaccinia, Adverse events. Risk factors Persons with atopic dermatitis or eczema, irrespective of disease severity or activity, are at risk of developing eczema vaccinatum and should not receive pre-exposure smallpox vaccination. Transmission to Contacts Vaccinia virus may be spread from person-to-person, which means that people who have close contact with recent vaccinees may be exposed to the virus and may be at risk of developing complications.

Contributor Information Edward A. References 1. McNeill W. Plagues and Peoples. New York: Doubleday; Lane J, Goldstein J. Evaluation of 21st-century risks of smallpox vaccination and policy options. Ann Intern Med.