Thinking Ahead: Should Smallpox Become Reality, What Do We Do?

[ChemistCat]

There is a sizeable, cautious, but not hysterical contingent on FR that believes we may have been exposed to smallpox at some time in the last week. It's not something we know is happening. It's something we think is a reasonable scenario in light of other events. I'm starting this thread as a place to discuss what preparations our nation and communities do NOT seem to be making, and what our personal plans of action are if this CONTAGIOUS bioattack vector eclipses anthrax.

[SunnyUsa]

"I had 2 or 3 of them when I was a kid, none of them 'took', I never got the scar like everyone else did."

I know I must've had a small pox vaccine in the 1960's but I can't remember, and I have no scar that people are speaking about - the "scar" meant the vaccine took?

[newzjunkey]

(I live in California- there's no guarantee that the Governor won't do something stunningly stupid in response to such a scenario, like try to herd people together.)

OUR beloved governor? I'm shocked you would suggest he'd do something merely stunningly stupid! Shocked, I say. :)

[ChemistCat]

I am not interested in fighting about whether or not this is a reasonable topic of discussion. If you had gone on the air in NYC on 9/10 and told everyone who works in the WTC that it would collapse, nearly all of them would still have gone to work, probably laughing at you. Dammit, what does it take to convince people that the war is HERE, between the shining seas, within our own borders? I don't know that they have smallpox. I do know that if they DO have it THEY HAVE NO REASON NOT TO USE IT, and we also know we let a lot of people in here who shouldn't be.

[ChemistCat]

Make sure you're SURE whomever you collect smallpox pus from doesn't have HIV. :shudder: And Hepatitis. HPV. Oh, this could just get to be a real mess.

[Riley]

That wouldn't mean you'd ONLY lose just one of your kids if you have 3 kids, some families might not lose any but others will lose all their kids.

I say 'only', because I thought it was a much higher mortality rate- like 80-90%.

[munk]

I've read the vaccinations previously given are no longer good because of time. How many years is a vaccination good for? I wonder if the previously vaccinated would be less likely to die of the disease? One poster mentioned taking the pus of an infected individual in the latter stages of the disease and exposing it to a cut on the forearm on a non-infected person for a vaccination. I believe this was done historically but it is still quite possible to die if everything is not just 'right'.

[FITZ]

Those pictures posted by Chemistcat are the mild ones. This disease was also called blackpox because the way some people got.

[NetSurfer]

Check the inside of your arm, too. Mine is on the inside of my left arm, and the same for my siblings. Apparently my pediatrician didn't like the visible scar? I've read at FR that some individuals were vaccinated on the thigh, as well.

[69ConvertibleFirebird]

Hey! What's this scar on my butt?

[NotJustAnotherPrettyFace]

FYI - Smallpox has an incubation period of 12 days.

[Riley]

That's a good plan,Riley.I think I'll do that,go on a camping trip and risk being eaten by a bear.

I grew up in the woods, and I still go up to the Sierras frequently. I don't do things that attract them, and I carry a lot of firepower.

Besides, I can think of some good uses for a bear hide and a few hundred pounds of bear meat.

[NetSurfer]

Um, that's for you to know and me to put WAY outta my mind, pal. :)

[FITZ]

Make sure you're SURE whomever you collect smallpox pus from doesn't have HIV. :shudder: And Hepatitis. HPV. Oh, this could just get to be a real mess.

You don't need their blood or body fluids, just a little of their virus but I'd probably select people who could be blood donors for that reason. Even when the government gives the vaccine, the virus often spreads to others without them trying. That's the good thing about this vaccine, it's just a live unattenuated virus and doesn't really require the government to spread it.

[Age of Reason]

all are left with terrible disfiguring scars.

One warrior king, Charles XII of Sweeden, considered his smallpox scars a sign of manliness.

(Not much consolation for the ladies, though.)

[jwrogers]

Smallpox "only" has a 30% mortality rate? Or is that the mortality rate for smallpox YEARS AGO? The fact is that no one is sure what the mortality rate for smallpox is right now, in an environment that hasn't seen the smallpox virus in 30 years. Kids don't play outside these days-- they sit inside watching TV and playing video games. They use antibacterial soap and sterile toys, and they might not build up as much immuno-defense as they need. We just don't know. As for the flu vaccine, I think anyone in a risk category needs it. For strong young healthy people, it might be a good idea to let your immune system handle some of these bugs and build immunity naturally.

[FITZ]

How many years is a vaccination good for?

That varies from person to person, some people probably have immunity for life, others might not or they might have partial immunity which will help them alot. If you ever had chemotherapy or have AIDS, you likely wouldn't have immunity.

[Gimlet]

Now that would really challenge us!! Imagine a sure fire vaccination aainst a deadly and swift spreading disease that was made using aborted fetuses.God orbid) But how many could resist saving their own precious skins in that scenario? Yes..I know it is a sick one. Forgive!) Would we pass the test do you think?

[MindBender26]

Evidence is that vaccination lasts sometime between 7 and 30 years. No one knows for sure, as there has been no way of knowing.....

Second question, would old vaccination reduce severity of disease if not total immunity. Again, no one knows.

Reason I do not think OBL has released smallpox; hewould have no way of keeping it from Muslims. It would be much more fatal there, as there are few physicians to treat patients, etc. In addition, any attempt to vaccinate large number of Muslims would be picked up by intel.... wouldn't it.....

This all assumes he is rational but dedicated man.

[ChemistCat]

I'm seeing statistics on the incubation period ranging from 7-17 days.

A lot of people (like me) are alive who wouldn't have been back when smallpox was a going concern. Although I was vaccinated in the late 60s, it's a pretty good bet that I am no longer even slightly immune, in part because my body is weakened by chronic illness. It would take a lot of garlic to reverse that!!! I am willing to bet that there would be HIGHER morbidity and faster transmission today.

One crucial point is whether or not the disease is communicable before symptoms show. I've seen credible sources that say it is, and credible ones that say it is not. God help us if it can spread before it shows.

The always-fatal form of smallpox, blackpox, occurs when the body forms what is basically one huge blister instead of many small ones. The skin tissue is completely separated, turns black, and dies. Death rapidly follows, and I understand that this form produces an exceptionally effective transmission vector.

[Pearls Before Swine]

I had 2 or 3 of them when I was a kid, none of them 'took', I never got the scar like everyone else did.

Me, too. What do you think it means? Bad batch of vaccine, or inherited immunity?