s COVID-19 spreads, there has been speculation about a new vaccine that could possibly be available next year to help contain the virus. The development of the vaccine has brought back into question if everyone should be inoculated to prevent outbreaks of known infectious diseases. Watching the spread of the pandemic and understanding how unprepared the world is for illness at this magnitude, illustrates vividly the value of vaccinations. Their benefits and history bear repeating, especially today.
In 1980, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that smallpox had been eradicated due to worldwide efforts from governments and doctors and the smallpox vaccine. One reason why smallpox was eradicated was due to high surveillance and education on how people were affected by the disease. Smallpox normally changes peoples’ appearance with the smallpox rash making it immediately identifiable. The ability to see the effects of the disease made it easier for doctors to treat and quarantine patients. Another reason why smallpox was eventually eradicated was because it was a human to human transmitted disease. Animals cannot spread smallpox to humans. The organization’s next step was to focus its attention on a different virus that could also be eradicated.
Like with smallpox, the infectious disease that was to be chosen for eradication needed to be only transmitted from human to human. It also had to be a virus with an effective vaccine that could be made available to the world’s population. Another qualification was that it needed to stay the same and not mutate. Once a human is vaccinated, they must be immune for life and a person cannot get the same virus repeatedly. WHO eventually decided that the next phase for eradicating infectious diseases would be target polio.
Polio has been eradicated in the United States since 1978. In 2018, there were three countries left that still have polio: Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Nigeria. Overall, there has been significant progress in eradicating polio with a 99% decline in cases since 1988 due to the WHO’s eradication efforts. While WHO and those in the medical field have succeeded globally in their efforts to stop infectious diseases from spreading, there appears to be misconceptions in some countries over the use of vaccinations.
In 1998, Andrew Wakefield published a study that correlated the MMR vaccine to autism in young children. While the study was later proved to be false, its impact still affects the world today and how people perceive vaccines. In 2019, there was a measles outbreak in the United States. There were 1,249 people infected by measles, the most people infected since 1992. About 69% of those infected cases were believed to be from communities that do not vaccinate their children. In 2019, Samoa had a measles outbreak. In December 2019, there were 73 deaths reported from the outbreak and 5,267 cases of measles. Samoa is not the only nation with measles outbreaks. The CDC in the United States released a statement that in the first five months of 2019 they had more cases that year than they had each year for the past 25 years. Worldwide in 2018, more than 140,000 people died from measles according to WHO. The most affected nations in 2018 from measles were the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Madagascar, Somalia, and Ukraine. All of these nations are still developing and feel the ramifications more than developed nations. In Europe, Albania, Czechia, Greece, and the United Kingdom all had outbreaks of measles.
13.5 million children were not vaccinated in 2018. In the case of measles, at least an estimated 89%-94% of people must have the measles vaccine for herd immunity to be effective. Those who are unable to have access to these vaccines and do not have a good healthcare system are the most at risk, and it is our job to utilize herd immunity to protect others who do not have the option. As everyone has seen with COVID-19 virus, if there is an outbreak of mass proportions, many governments and countries do not have the ability to handle the amount of people who are infected. It is important that we recognize how vaccines have changed healthcare and how they can help us to fight off pandemics from already known infectious diseases.
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A Brief History on the Benefits of Vaccinations
April 28, 2020
A
s COVID-19 spreads, there has been speculation about a new vaccine that could possibly be available next year to help contain the virus. The development of the vaccine has brought back into question if everyone should be inoculated to prevent outbreaks of known infectious diseases. Watching the spread of the pandemic and understanding how unprepared the world is for illness at this magnitude, illustrates vividly the value of vaccinations. Their benefits and history bear repeating, especially today.
In 1980, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that smallpox had been eradicated due to worldwide efforts from governments and doctors and the smallpox vaccine. One reason why smallpox was eradicated was due to high surveillance and education on how people were affected by the disease. Smallpox normally changes peoples’ appearance with the smallpox rash making it immediately identifiable. The ability to see the effects of the disease made it easier for doctors to treat and quarantine patients. Another reason why smallpox was eventually eradicated was because it was a human to human transmitted disease. Animals cannot spread smallpox to humans. The organization’s next step was to focus its attention on a different virus that could also be eradicated.
Like with smallpox, the infectious disease that was to be chosen for eradication needed to be only transmitted from human to human. It also had to be a virus with an effective vaccine that could be made available to the world’s population. Another qualification was that it needed to stay the same and not mutate. Once a human is vaccinated, they must be immune for life and a person cannot get the same virus repeatedly. WHO eventually decided that the next phase for eradicating infectious diseases would be target polio.
Polio has been eradicated in the United States since 1978. In 2018, there were three countries left that still have polio: Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Nigeria. Overall, there has been significant progress in eradicating polio with a 99% decline in cases since 1988 due to the WHO’s eradication efforts. While WHO and those in the medical field have succeeded globally in their efforts to stop infectious diseases from spreading, there appears to be misconceptions in some countries over the use of vaccinations.
In 1998, Andrew Wakefield published a study that correlated the MMR vaccine to autism in young children. While the study was later proved to be false, its impact still affects the world today and how people perceive vaccines. In 2019, there was a measles outbreak in the United States. There were 1,249 people infected by measles, the most people infected since 1992. About 69% of those infected cases were believed to be from communities that do not vaccinate their children. In 2019, Samoa had a measles outbreak. In December 2019, there were 73 deaths reported from the outbreak and 5,267 cases of measles. Samoa is not the only nation with measles outbreaks. The CDC in the United States released a statement that in the first five months of 2019 they had more cases that year than they had each year for the past 25 years. Worldwide in 2018, more than 140,000 people died from measles according to WHO. The most affected nations in 2018 from measles were the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Madagascar, Somalia, and Ukraine. All of these nations are still developing and feel the ramifications more than developed nations. In Europe, Albania, Czechia, Greece, and the United Kingdom all had outbreaks of measles.
13.5 million children were not vaccinated in 2018. In the case of measles, at least an estimated 89%-94% of people must have the measles vaccine for herd immunity to be effective. Those who are unable to have access to these vaccines and do not have a good healthcare system are the most at risk, and it is our job to utilize herd immunity to protect others who do not have the option. As everyone has seen with COVID-19 virus, if there is an outbreak of mass proportions, many governments and countries do not have the ability to handle the amount of people who are infected. It is important that we recognize how vaccines have changed healthcare and how they can help us to fight off pandemics from already known infectious diseases.
