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#vaccination

5 public questions tagged with this topic.

Vaccine

The first successful vaccine was developed against:

First successful vaccine in history targeted smallpox, a highly contagious severe disease caused by variola major and minor viruses double-stranded DNA orthopoxvirus with case fatality 30 percent, disfiguring pustular rash progressing to scabs, blindness and death, responsible for 300-500 million deaths in 20th century alone. While variolation practice of inoculating smallpox pus existed in China and Turkey with significant risk, Jenner in 1798 demonstrated safer cowpox inoculation conferring protection without causing disseminated smallpox. Subsequent mass vaccination campaigns through 19th a

Ref: Fenner Smallpox eradication book WHO; Riedel Proc Baylor 2005 first vaccine smallpox; CDC.

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Vaccine

The term vaccination was derived from the Latin word 'vacca' meaning:

The word vaccination originates from Latin feminine noun vacca meaning cow, itself derived from Proto-Indo European root *wokeh meaning cow, reflecting historical link between dairy cattle disease cowpox and protection against smallpox. English physician Edward Jenner in 1796 observed that Gloucestershire milkmaids exposed to cowpox pustules from cow udders developed mild illness but subsequently seemed immune to devastating smallpox epidemics affecting humans. He termed procedure vaccination from vacca to honor bovine source, distinguishing from earlier variolation using smallpox material. La

Ref: Baxby Vaccination etymology; Riedel Proc Baylor 2005 vacca cow Latin; WHO Smallpox history.

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