History

• Edward Jenner discovered the vaccination for smallpox in 1796. Receiving the smallpox vaccine was mandatory in England and Wales by 1853.
  
  

Significance

• The smallpox vaccine was so successful that it was no longer given in the United States after 1972. The disease was considered to have been eradicated in the United States at that time. It was considered to have been eradicated worldwide by 1977, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
  
  

Administration

• The smallpox vaccine is given with a two-pronged needle. The needle is dipped into the vaccine solution, and the patient's upper arm is then pricked several times with the needle.
  
  

Time Frame

• Once the smallpox vaccination is given, it provides immunity for three to five years. The level of immunity gradually declines as time passes.
  
  

Considerations

• The United States currently has enough smallpox vaccine for every person in the country, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The vaccines have been found to be effective in 95 percent of those vaccinated and to lessen the severity of the disease for the remaining 5 percent if they were vaccinated before contracting smallpox.