Simply, and with great humanity, The Eradication of Smallpox tells the story of smallpox - it's origins, the horror of the disease, and the millions of people killed or disfigured by it. During the 18th and 19th centuries, it is estimated that one out of every ten people died from the disease; some say one out of every seven. Smallpox attacked very young children in particular. The story progresses with the practice of variolation, the life of Edward Jenner who first proposed 'vaccination' with cow pox vaccine (little James Phipps was the first person ever vaccinated in this way), the years of debate about the efficacy of this novel method, and the later worldwide initiatives to rid the planet of this horrific disease. In 1979, the story culminates in the only total eradication of an infectious disease that mankind has ever accomplished. This year celebrates the 20th anniversary of this momentous achievement. In the intervening years, debate has raged about what we should do with the remaining smallpox viral stocks. Do we destroy them, so they can't fall into the hands of bioterrorists, or do we maintain them, in case they may be of use in some unexpected way, for therapeutic purposes? These questions are thoroughly discussed in the book.

The Vaccine Book provides comprehensive information on the current and future world of vaccines. It reveals the scientific opportunities and potential impact of vaccines, including economic and ethical challenges, problems encountered when producing vaccines, how clinical vaccine trials are designed, and how to introduce vaccines into widespread use. Although vaccines are now available for many diseases, there are still challenges ahead for major diseases such as AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. The Vaccine Book is designed for students, researchers, public health officials, and all others interested in increasing their understanding of vaccines.

About 375 million people are infected with the hepatitis B virus. It has killed more people than AIDS and also causes millions of cases of liver cancer. The discovery of this deadly virus and the vaccine against it--a vaccine that is sharply decreasing the infection rate worldwide and is probably the first effective cancer vaccine--was one of the great triumphs of twentieth-century medicine. And it almost didn't happen. With wit and insight, this scientific memoir and story of discovery describes how Baruch Blumberg and a team of researchers found a virus they were not looking for and created a vaccine for a disease they previously knew little about--work that took the author around the world and won him the Nobel Prize. Blumberg and his collaborators were investigating relationships between gene distribution and disease susceptibility, research that was yielding interesting data but no real breakthroughs. Many viewed their work as more field trip than science. But, through decades of hard work and investigative twists and turns, their pursuit led to the hepatitis B antigen, the elusive virus itself, and, ultimately, the vaccine. As he takes the reader through the detective work that culminated in his incredible discovery, the author recounts with immediacy exciting moments in the lab and in the field--from a hair-raising flight to Africa to an unpleasant encounter with Alaskan sled dogs. The hepatitis B story is more than a fascinating chronicle of a major discovery. What Blumberg followed to the virus was a trail of remarkable "accidents" that happen when scientists seek answers to interesting questions. Those events, combined with the investigator's determined persistence, resulted in studies that generated a pharmaceutical industry, have far-flung public-health applications, and saved millions of lives.

Bodily Matters explores the anti-vaccination movement that emerged in England in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth in response to government-mandated smallpox vaccination. By requiring a painful and sometimes dangerous medical procedure for all infants, the Compulsory Vaccination Act set an important precedent for state regulation of bodies. From its inception in 1853 until its demise in 1907, the compulsory smallpox vaccine was fiercely resisted, largely by members of the working class who interpreted it as an infringement of their rights as citizens and a violation of their children's bodies. Nadja Durbach contends that the anti-vaccination movement is historically significant not only because it was arguably the largest medical resistance campaign ever mounted in Europe but also because it clearly articulated pervasive anxieties regarding the integrity of the body and the role of the modern state. Analyzing historical documents on both sides of the vaccination debate, Durbach focuses on the key events and rhetorical strategies of the resistance campaign. She shows that those for and against the vaccine had very different ideas about how human bodies worked and how best to safeguard them from disease. Individuals opposed to mandatory vaccination saw their own and their children's bodies not as potentially contagious and thus dangerous to society but rather as highly vulnerable to contamination and violation. Bodily Matters challenges the notion that resistance to vaccination can best be understood, and thus easily dismissed, as the ravings of an unscientific “lunatic fringe.” It locates the anti-vaccination movement at the very center of broad public debates in Victorian England over medical developments, the politics of class, the extent of government intervention into the private lives of its citizens, and the values of a liberal society.

A comprehensive and extremely accessible textbook written by a professor with over 20 years of experience teaching immunology courses. Elgert carefully melds together biology, clinical science, genetics and molecular biology of the immune system to provide a coherent and complete account of our knowledge of immunology. A variety of pedagogical aids, including chapter outlines, objectives and summaries as well as a self-evaluation section, assist students in the learning process.

Garrett probes the human impact on the environment and the resulting emergence of new and mutating deadly viruses.

During the Rubella Syndrome epidemic of the 1960s, many children were born deaf, blind, and mentally disabled. David Goode has devoted his life and career to understanding such people's world, a world without words, but not, the author confirms, one without communication. This book is the result of his studies of two children with congenital deaf-blindness and mental retardation. Goode spent countless hours observing, teaching, and playing with Christina, who had been institutionalized since age six, and Bianca, who remained in the care of her parents. He also observed the girls' parents, school, and medical environments, exploring the unique communication practices—sometimes so subtle they are imperceptible to outsiders—that family and health care workers create to facilitate innumerable every day situations. A World Without Words presents moving and convincing evidence that human beings both with and without formal language can understand and communicate with each other in many ways. Through various experiments in such unconventional forms of communication as playing guitar, mimicking, and body movements like jumping, swinging, and rocking, Goode established an understanding of these children on their own terms. He discovered a spectrum of non-formal language through which these children create their own set of symbols within their own reality, and accommodate and maximize the sensory resources they do have. Ultimately, he suggests, it is impractical to attempt to interpret these children's behaviors using ideas about normal behavior of the hearing and seeing world.-

Jessie lives with her family in the frontier village of Clifton, Indiana, in 1840 -- or so she believes. When diphtheria strikes the village and the children of Clifton start dying, Jessie's mother reveals a shocking secret -- it's actually 1996, and they are living in a reconstructed village that serves as a tourist site. In the world outside, medicine exists that can cure the dread disease, and Jessie's mother is sending her on a dangerous mission to bring back help. But beyond the walls of Clifton, Jessie discovers a world even more alien and threatening than she could have imagined, and soon she finds her own life in jeopardy. Can she get help before the children of Clifton, and Jessie herself, run out of time?-

Known as the "deadly scourge of childhood," diphtheria was a highly feared disease in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in the United States. In New York City alone, thousands of cases were reported each year, with large numbers of deaths. Physicians and public health experts viewed diphtheria as one of the most difficult to treat and control of all childhood diseases. In Childhood's Deadly Scourge, Evelynn M. Hammonds describes how New York City became the first city in the United States to apply laboratory-based advances in bacteriology and immunology to the treatment and prevention of this deadly disease--the first such use of scientific medicine in a public health crisis in this country. Critical to the successful control of diphtheria, she argues, were unprecedented efforts to remove the stigma associated with the disease and provide access to treatment and preventive vaccines for the entire population at risk. By 1930, the successful immunization of thousands of preschool- and school-aged children made evident for the first time the promise and force of the laboratory in infectious disease control. Today, as the threat of AIDS and other new diseases reopens the conflict between the protection of public health and the protection of civil liberties, Childhood's Deadly Scourge reminds us that technical solutions for disease control have complex social implications.

Because of the unique needs of children with ASD, it is important to pay special attention to the details of their experience in the medical environment. Designed to help make the medical experience easier for all involved, this book presents information on ASD, the varying developmental levels, interventions, and assessments that medical staff, parents, educators, and key service providers can use to more effectively interact with and support children with ASD while in the medical setting. The information and techniques presented in "Prescription for Success" can be used by doctors, nurses, medical technicians, residents, interns, and even administrative staff to support children with ASD and their families in what can otherwise be trying circumstances. A CD at the back of the book includes forms and worksheets that can be printed and duplicated.

An experienced doctor and a well-known child advocate address the issues, parental concerns, medical benefits, and possible risks associated with childhood immunizations. All parents must address the question of vaccinating their children. Fifty years ago the vaccine question asked by parents was simply, When? But with the development of new vaccines, the dramatic changes in immunization schedules, and disturbing reports of the risks and possible side effects associated with certain vaccines, parents have more questions and greater concerns. Today parents are asking: Will this vaccine be safe for my child? What are the side effects? Is this the best way to safeguard my child's health and the health of our community? Does my child need to be immunized from a disease that barely exists anymore? VACCINATING YOUR CHILD addresses the medical, ethical, and legal issues parents need to know about so they can make informed decisions about individual vaccinations. The authors provide the most up-to-date information available from the medical community about vaccinations and the benefits and risks of each vaccination for the individual and the community. They also address the special concerns associated with specific vaccinations, including the oral polio vaccine and the controversial rotavirus vaccine that has now been removed from the market. Finally, the authors also review the vaccines that children may need as they grow up and the vaccines that all family members may need as they travel around and outside of the United States.

Pocket-sized quick reference compiling guidelines from the American Medical Association, American Academy of Family Physicians, and other societies on the routine and nonroutine vaccination of children, adolescents, and adults.

Reference for those working in the field. This edition has updated information on current immunization schedules, advice on vaccines, infections, finances, and travel health. Modified, bulletedoutline format. Includes tables, maps, and graphs.

Balto has a quiet life as a sled dog—until tragedy strikes. Dozens of children in Nome become sick with diphtheria. Without antitoxin serum, they will perish—and the closest supply is 650 miles away! The only way to get the serum to Nome is by sled, but can the dogs deliver it in time? Heading bravely into a brutal blizzard, Balto leads the race for life.

The riveting story of one of the greatest scientific accomplishments of the twentieth century, from the coauthor of the #1 New York Times bestseller Apollo 13. With rivalries, reversals, and a race against time, the struggle to eradicate polio is one of the great tales of modern history. It begins with the birth of Jonas Salk, shortly before one of the worst polio epidemics in United States history. At the time, the disease was a terrifying enigma: striking from out of nowhere, it afflicted tens of thousands of children in this country each year and left them-literally overnight-paralyzed, and sometimes at death's door. Salk was in medical school just as a president crippled by the disease, Franklin D. Roosevelt, was taking office-and providing the impetus to the drive for studies on polio. By the early 1950s, Salk had already helped create an influenza vaccine, and was hot on the trail of the polio virus. He was nearly thwarted, though, by the politics of medicine and by a rival researcher eager to discredit his proposed solution. Meanwhile, in 1952, polio was spreading in record numbers, with 57,000 cases in the United States that summer alone. In early 1954, Salk was weighing the possibility of trials of a not-yet-perfected vaccine against-as the summer approached-the prospect of thousands more children being struck down by the disease. The results of the history-making trials were announced at a press conference on April 12, 1955: "The vaccine works." The room-and an entire nation-erupted in cheers for this singular medical achievement. Salk became a cultural hero and icon for a whole generation. Now, at the fiftieth anniversary of the first national vaccination program-and as humanity is tantalizingly close to eradicating polio worldwide-comes this unforgettable chronicle. Salk's work was an unparalleled achievement-and it makes for a magnificent read.

Updated to reflect the wide spectrum of economic, regulatory, financial, ethical, and political issues impacting vaccinology in industrialized and developing nations, the Third Edition pinpoints relevant breakthroughs, trends, and advances that are altering the fields of vaccinology and immunization science—highlighting the most influential developments in vaccine safety, regulation, manufacture, and utilization, as well as clinical trials standardization and monitoring.

While millions of Americans receive vaccinations each year, a vocal segment of the population are opposed to all immunizations--some even refusing to get mandated vaccinations for their children. In The Vaccine Controversy, Dr. Kurt Link--a specialist in internal medicine--explores that paradox and provides a history of vaccine development, including such possible future vaccines as those being developed in the hope of immunizing against HIV. A strong supporter of vaccination programs, Link explains the immune system and how it works, as well as outlining the various types of vaccines (including the efficacy and potential toxicity of each). Appendices spell out current medical recommendations for vaccines, describe the legal issues involved in decisions to vaccinate or not, and explain the workings of clinical trials where work is done to determine if a vaccine is effective or not, or has any remarkable side effects.

In 1796, an unknown country doctor named Edward Jenner developed and administered the world's first vaccine-turning the tide in humanity's age-old war against disease. Award-winning author Albert Marrin explains the significance of "immortal" Jenner's gift to mankind as he narrates the epic story of smallpox, a disease so contagious and deadly it has dramatically influenced the course of history. From the mummified remains of its first known victim to the sinister threat of the "frozen monster" that lurks in the vials of ultramodern laboratories, readers will be held spellbound by this readable and timely combination of science and history.

Written by recognized authorities, this handbook offers practical, up-to-date guidelines on proper use of vaccines and helps clinicians answer the many questions asked by patients and parents. Chapters describe in detail all vaccines currently recommended for infants and children, travelers, and individuals in special circumstances. For each vaccine, the authors discuss the disease and its epidemiology, the vaccine’s efficacy and safety, and the practical questions most frequently asked about the vaccine’s use. An extensive chapter addresses specific parental concerns about vaccines and their safety. The authors also discuss problems such as allergies, breastfeeding, dosing intervals and missed vaccines, and immunocompromised individuals.

In the winter of 1925, Nome, Alaska, was hit by an unexpected and deadly outbreak of diphtheria. Officials immediately quarantined the town, but the only cure for the community of more than 1,400 people was antitoxin serum and the nearest supply was in Anchorage—hundreds of miles of snowbound wilderness away. The only way to get it to Nome was by dogsled. Twenty teams braved subzero temperatures and blizzard conditions to run over 600 miles in six days in a desperate relay race that saved the people of Nome. Several of the dogs, including Togo and Balto, became national heroes. Today their efforts, and those of the courageous mushers, are commemorated every March by the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. Jon Van Zyle’s stunning oil paintings capture the brutal conditions, pristine wilderness, and sheer guts and determination demonstrated by the heroic mushers and dogs.

Tracing the history of the Children's Vaccine Initiative (CVI), this book examines its successes and failures in promoting the development of both new and improved vaccines for the Third World. The CVI has achieved many successes, including making vaccination a top international public sector priority. Most of its failures have stemmed from the often bitter competition between the fledgling Initiative and the notoriously turf-conscious and inefficient World Health Organization (WHO), over their respective roles in championing vaccines. Vaccines are the most inexpensive means of improving the health and lowering the mortality of people in the Third World, where infectious diseases kill millions of children every year. As a result of the biotechnology revolution, it is possible that a whole array of new vaccines can be created for diseases which are not yet preventable. What has stood in the way of this major medical breakthrough has been that vaccine "product development" has been in the hands of commercial companies, whose activities are dominated by the need for maximizing profit, which the Third World poor cannot generate.

Vaccines have saved more lives than any other single medical advance. Yet today only four companies make vaccines, and there is a growing crisis in vaccine availability. Why has this happened? This remarkable book recounts for the first time a devastating episode in 1955 at Cutter Laboratories in Berkeley, California, thathas led many pharmaceutical companies to abandon vaccine manufacture. Drawing on interviews with public health officials, pharmaceutical company executives, attorneys, Cutter employees, and victims of the vaccine, as well as on previously unavailable archives, Dr. Paul Offit offers a full account of the Cutter disaster. He describes the nation’s relief when the polio vaccine was developed by Jonas Salk in 1955, the production of the vaccine at industrial facilities such as the one operated by Cutter, and the tragedy that occurred when 200,000 people were inadvertently injected with live virulent polio virus: 70,000 became ill, 200 were permanently paralyzed, and 10 died. Dr. Offit also explores how, as a consequence of the tragedy, one jury’s verdict set in motion events that eventually suppressed the production of vaccines already licensed and deterred the development of new vaccines that hold the promise of preventing other fatal diseases.

The Essential Reference on Vaccines! Are vaccines necessary? What do they protect against? How are they made? Why are there so many shots? Haven't they been found to be more dangerous than helpful? Which type of polio vaccine is best? What vaccines do my children and I need before traveling to another country? With all the vaccine choices available and all the vaccine controversy in the media, you have a lot of questions. You'll find the answers in Vaccines: What Every Parent Should Know, Revised Edition. This essential reference has been completely updated to include all the most up-to-date vaccine information: from why the rotavirus vaccine was recently suspended for use to when you might expect an AIDS vaccine to be available. Written in an accessible manner—and complete with schedules, recommendations, a travel section, and tips -- this book helps you sort through all the confusing vaccination information to determine what is right for your family.

All who lived in the early 1950s remember the fear of polio and the elation felt when a successful vaccine was found. Now David Oshinsky tells the gripping story of the polio terror and of the intense effort to find a cure, from the March of Dimes to the discovery of the Salk and Sabin vaccines--and beyond. Here is a remarkable portrait of America in the early 1950s, using the widespread panic over polio to shed light on our national obsessions and fears. Drawing on newly available papers of Jonas Salk, Albert Sabin and other key players, Oshinsky paints a suspenseful portrait of the race for the cure, weaving a dramatic tale centered on the furious rivalry between Salk and Sabin. Indeed, the competition was marked by a deep-seated ill will among the researchers that remained with them until their deaths. The author also tells the story of Isabel Morgan, perhaps the most talented of all polio researchers, who might have beaten Salk to the prize if she had not retired to raise a family. As backdrop to this feverish research, Oshinsky offers an insightful look at the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis, which was founded in the 1930s by FDR and Basil O'Connor. The National Foundation revolutionized fundraising and the perception of disease in America, using "poster children" and the famous March of Dimes to raise hundreds of millions of dollars from a vast army of contributors (instead of a few well-heeled benefactors), creating the largest research and rehabilitation network in the history of medicine. The polio experience also revolutionized the way in which the government licensed and tested new drugs before allowing them on the market, and the way in which the legal system dealt with manufacturers' liability for unsafe products. Finally, and perhaps most tellingly, Oshinsky reveals that polio was never the raging epidemic portrayed by the media, but in truth a relatively uncommon disease. But in baby-booming America--increasingly suburban, family-oriented, and hygiene-obsessed--the specter of polio, like the specter of the atomic bomb, soon became a cloud of terror over daily life. Both a gripping scientific suspense story and a provocative social and cultural history, Polio opens a fresh window onto postwar America.

In 1994, the Ministers of Health of the Americas adopted the goal of eradicating measles from the Western Hemisphere by the year 2000. Although the countries have made considerable progress toward this goal, scattered outbreaks continue to occur. It is essential that the countries maintain high immunization levels within their populations, especially in light of the threat of reintroduction of measles from other regions of the world. To help the countries of the Americas become and remain measles-free, PAHO has developed a vaccination strategy for outbreak prevention and measles eradication. This publication outlines that strategy and also provides valuable background information about measles in a concise format and easy-to-understand language. Its seven chapters cover such subjects as the epidemiology of measles, clinical aspects of the disease, proper handling and delivery of measles vaccines, and methods of laboratory confirmation of measles infection. The rationale and activities related to the vaccination strategy are explained in depth. The largest section of the book is devoted to surveillance for measles cases and gives guidelines for case investigation, outbreak response, and other components of an effective surveillance system. Attached as appendices are numerous examples of forms that can be copied and modified as needed for local surveillance purposes. There is also an extensive bibliography arranged by subject. The practical information contained in this manual will benefit public health personnel and medical practitioners at all levels. The field guide is an essential tool for anyone involved in administering or carrying out vaccination programs, both in the Americas and elsewhere.

Designed with academic vaccine researchers in mind, this book presents a road map of how a vaccine develops from an idea in a researcher's imagination, to the lab bench, through preclinical evaluation, and into the clinic for safety and immunogenicity. The result of the editors' own efforts to glean practical information on the steps necessary to manufacture, bottle, and test their vaccines for clinical trials, this book provides answers to researcher questions such as: How do I identify antigens that would produce effective vaccines? Can I produce a clinical lot of vaccine in my laboratory? How should a vaccine be bottled? Which FDA expectations must I meet? What is an IND application and how do I file it? Which CFRs apply to production of a vaccine?

This classic resource examines every aspect of vaccination - from development to use in reducing disease. Completely revised and updated, it provides authoritative information on vaccine production, available preparations, efficacy, and safety...recommendations for vaccine use, with rationales...data on the impact of vaccination programs on morbidity and mortality...and more.

Reveals new understanding of molecular mechanisms and applies this new understanding to the development of vaccines. Includes reproducible techniques for researchers. Discusses genetic manipulation of viruses and bacteria for producing live vaccines. For researchers.

Nome, Alaska, sits on the edge of the Bering Sea two degrees below the Arctic Circle, and there are few more forbidding places on earth, especially in winter. Dr. Curtis Welch knew the signs of diphtheria, knew that his patients—many of them children—would die without a shipment of fresh serum. The port was icebound and the nearest railhead was almost 700 miles away across mountains, rivers, and the treacherous ice of Norton Sound. A blizzard was brewing, and airplanes, in 1925, could not fly in such conditions. Only the dogs could do it. A relay was set up, and the drivers, many of them Native Alaskans, set off into the night at 60š below zero, often trusting their lead dogs to find the trail under feet of driven snow. The legendary heroism and endurance of the men and dogs in the Serum Run need no enhancement. Here, for the first time, their story is told in full.

Commonly considered children's diseases, measles and rubella have experienced a resurgence in recent years, reminding us that they not only strike people of a variety of ages but also are potentially deadly diseases. Tracing their medical history from ancient to modern times, this solid work considers symptoms and transmission, including discussion about outbreaks on college campuses and among preschool children that have forced the medical community to reexamine how and when immunizations should be given. The authors also explore the development of the measles vaccine and explain why the diseases continue to pose a health problem. An outstanding curricular supplement for health and biology study, as well as a handy, readable reference source for students and staff. Time line, source notes, glossary, reading list.

Countries around the world are engaged in health reform, which places great demands on health care providers and systems managers. From the managed care revolution in the United States to the rebuilding of health systems in postcommunist Russia, these reforms impact millions of health care workers, government officials, patients, and the public alike. The New Public Health will help students and practitioners understand factors affecting the reform process of health care organization and delivery. It links the classic public health issues such as environmental sanitation, health education, and epidemiology with the new issues of universal health care, economics, and management of health systems for the new century. This text provides a comprehensive look at the issues facing undergraduate and graduate students as well as the new generation of physicians, nurses, health managers, and policy makers as they seek to define a new approach to public health and health service.

When spots break out all over her body, Vera must stay in the sick room where it is lonely and scary and where she can't fall asleep.