Smallpox: A very dangerous infectious disease

Smallpox is a very deadly and viral infection. And it is contagious which means it spreads from one person to another person. And also it causes permanent scarring. This smallpox disease will cause disfigurement of the body.

Humans are affected by Smallpox for thousands of years but it was flushed out worldwide in the year of 1980 because of vaccines so thanks to that vaccine. And it is no more of natural to be found in the world. In 1977, the last case of naturally occurring smallpox was reported.

Smallpox virus samples have been kept for the research process. With the help of scientific advancement technology, smallpox has made it in the lab. This will lead to use as a bioweapon someday.

Smallpox can be prevented by vaccines but most people do not naturally contact with this disease, routine vaccination is not suggested. New antiviral medications will be used to treat people with smallpox.

Symptoms

Smallpox pustules cover the body. After exposure of smallpox virus, the first symptoms of smallpox will appear only after 12 to 14 days. You feel and look sick because of the virus present in your body from 7 to 19 days before. This affected period is so called incubation period.

After this incubation period, you will have sudden flu symptoms will occur and these include:

• Fever

• Muscle aches

• Headache

• Severe fatigue

• Severe back pain

• Vomiting, sometimes

After a few days, flat red spots appear on the body. They usually start in the mouth and on the tongue and usually spread to the skin. The face, arms and legs are most often affected first which is followed by toes and feet and hands.

After the two days of spots on the body, these spots will turn into blisters which are filled with clear fluid. Later some days, these blisters will fill up with pus. These types of sores are called pustules. Scabs will form after 8 to 9 days of pustules, these sabs will eventually fall off and leave deep pitted scars.

When the rash appears and until the scabs fall off, smallpox can be spread from one person to person

Causes

A infectious disease of smallpox is usually caused by variola virus. This virus can spread:

Directly from person to person.  You can catch smallpox by being surrounded by someone who is affected. An infected person can spread this variola virus while they cough, sneeze and talk. It will come in contact with skin sores which causes you to get smallpox.

Indirectly from an infected person. It can rarely spread through the air inside the building when the infected person is in the same building, same floor or other rooms.

Through contaminated items.  Usually this way is less likely to have smallpox. It can get by contact with contaminated clothing and bedding.

As a terrorist weapon, potentially.  Smallpox can also be used as a weapon which is an unlikely threat. But it is more dangerous if releasing this virus could spread the disease quickly and governments are well prepared for these incidents.

Treatments for Smallpox

A suspected smallpox victim is isolated in the hospital's emergency department. All emergency medical services and hospital personnel can be exposed to someone with smallpox which requires quarantine and vaccination. If they have not been vaccinated previously against smallpox.

Isolation: The infected person is immediately placed into isolation which means quarantine which is used for healthy, asymptomatic people who are not exposed to the infected person.

Quarantine: Anyone who has come in contact with the infected person for upto 17 days prior to the full recovery of the infected person's illness (includes doctor and nurse) which may be required to remain in quarantine until final diagnosis. If the suspected person is having smallpox, these individuals will remain in quarantine for at least 17 days to ensure that the supporting people are not also affected with the virus.

Treatment: 

Smallpox medical treatment will help to ease its symptoms. This treatment includes replacing fluid lost because of fever and skin breakdown. Antibiotics will be used for other skin infections. Usually the infected person will be kept in isolation for about 17 days until the scabs fall off.

Complications

Most people with smallpox usually survive. Some rare types of smallpox are deadly diseases. These more severe forms are more often affected by pregnant women and children.

People those who are recover from smallpox usually have severe scars particularly on the face,arms and the legs. In sometimes, this smallpox virus causes vision loss (blindness)

Prevention

If a smallpox outbreak happens, an infected person will be isolated which helps to try to stop the spread of the virus. Anyone who is in contact with someone who has smallpox will need a smallpox vaccine. This vaccine will protect you from getting sick or help you to get less sick if you are affected by smallpox. This smallpox vaccine will be taken before or one week after exposure of the variola virus.

Two vaccines are available:

• The ACAM2000 vaccine which usually uses a live virus that is like smallpox but it is less harmful. But this vaccine causes serious side effects like infections in the heart or brain. Because of these side effects, this vaccine is not given to everyone. Until the outbreak of smallpox, the risk  is more than its benefits for most people.

• Another vaccine is Jynneos which is used for a very weakened strain of virus which is safer than ACAM2000. This virus is preferred to people who can’t take ACAM2000  because of the risk of this vaccine which has  compromised  immune systems or skin disorders.

These smallpox vaccines will provide protection against other viral infections such as mpox, called as monkeypox and cowpox.

People vaccinated as children

If you had a smallpox vaccine as a child, You have some protection against the smallpox virus. After a smallpox vaccine, full or partial immunity will last up to 10 to years with the help of booster shots. If a smallpox outbreak happens, people who are vaccinated as a child will likely to get a new vaccination if they were affected by the virus.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. What is smallpox caused by?

Ans: Before smallpox was eradicated, it was a serious infectious disease caused by the variola virus.

Q2. What was the cure for smallpox?

Ans: It was one of the deadliest diseases known to humans and it can be eradicated by vaccination.

Q3.What does smallpox look like?

Ans: Lesions sit on the skin surface and look like small blisters. Lesions become firm, dome-shaped, and deep in the skin. Rash rarely develops on palms and soles.

Q4. How smallpox spread?

Ans: Smallpox normally spreads from direct and fairly prolonged face-to-face contact with infected persons. 

Q5. How long does smallpox last?

Ans: Three weeks after the rash appears, most scabs will have fallen off. Four weeks after the rash appears, all scabs should have fallen off.