What Can Smallpox Do

Overview 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

What is smallpox? How can it get spread? Can you tell if you have smallpox? Is there anything to worry about? Is smallpox a bioterrorism agent? What to do if you have smallpox? Is the vaccine safe? Is there a way to manage an outbreak?

Smallpox • It is a illness caused by the variola virus • There are blisters that have puss inside • Smallpox is not related to chicken pox and monkey pox • There is no new cases in the US since 1949 and in the world since 1978

How Smallpox can get spread? • It spreads through a person’s saliva, coughs, talks, or when someone sneeze • It can also spread through fluids coming from the blisters, from blankets or anything that touches the person’s skin

How can you tell if you have Smallpox • The doctor could tell by the way of rashes on the body because they are different than chickenpox • The first couple of symptoms are fever, malaise,  head and body aches, and sometimes vomiting • The blisters look different than chickenpox

Is the vaccine safe? • There would be some side effects that would be present with any one who wanted to take the vaccine. • The side effects of the vaccine is soreness around the vaccination site, fever and body aches, and in some rare cases people would die from the vaccine • If the person has the vaccine, the virus could spread to other people because it is still considered a live virus • The person who gives the vaccine would puncture the skin 15 times in a few seconds with a needle that has the virus on it.

Is Smallpox something to worry about? • Yes, because it is a disease and can spread very quickly • People should only worry if there is an outbreak • Everyone thinks they should get the vaccine but it could be as harmful as the disease • The fatality rate of smallpox is 30% of all people who are infected

Is there a way to manage an outbreak? There is a way to manage an outbreak. The way is not to go to your doctor by saying that you might have smallpox bur not sure. The only way to be very sure is if you have rashes allover your body and they would start to puss from 6-7 days after the rashes form. There is a way to manage an outbreak is if every is going to stay calm and would not rush to the doctors because they would have to deal with real episodes. There is a team of people who had the vaccine and are able to help get people into isolation without causing harm to anyone else. But, those people are needed for cases witch could not wait.

Pictures of Smallpox

Work Cited • • • • • • • •

http://www.aafp.org/afp/20030501/1927.html http://www.kidshealth.org/PageManager.jsp?dn=familydoctor&lic=44&ps=307&cat_id=&article_set =27269http://familydoctor.org/x2403.xml http://familydoctor.org/x2403.xml http://www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/smallpox/index.asp April 15, 2004 http://www.who.int/emc/diseases/smallpox/factsheet.html#Transmission April 15, 2004 http://www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/smallpox/smallpox-images/smallpox2.htm April 16, 2004 http://www.wfu.edu/users/turnaw2/smallpox%20rash.jpeg April 24, 2004 http://www.worldemergency.com/Videos/Presentations/Pgs/spinfoandprevent.htm April 24, 2004