When was smallpox first documented in human history?
The earliest credible clinical evidence of smallpox dates to around 1500 BCE, found in the mummified remains of the Egyptian pharaoh Ramses V, who died in 1145 BCE.
Common questions about Smallpox
Short answers, pulled from the story.
What were the symptoms of smallpox infection?
Initial symptoms included a fever of at least 102 degrees Fahrenheit, muscle pain, malaise, headache, and fatigue, followed by nausea, vomiting, and backache during the early prodromal stage. Visible lesions appeared on the mucous membranes of the mouth and throat by days 12 to 15, followed by a rash on the skin that developed into fluid-filled blisters before scabbing over.
How many people died from smallpox in the 20th century?
Smallpox claimed an estimated 300 million lives in the 20th century alone and killed up to 500 million people in the last 100 years of its existence. In 18th-century Europe, the disease killed an estimated 400,000 people each year.
When was smallpox officially declared eradicated?
The global eradication of smallpox was certified by a commission of eminent scientists on the 9th of December 1979 and subsequently endorsed by the World Health Assembly on the 8th of May 1980. This achievement made smallpox the only human disease to have been eradicated.
Who was the last person to die from naturally occurring smallpox?
The last naturally occurring case of indigenous smallpox, Variola minor, was diagnosed in Ali Maow Maalin, a hospital cook in Merca, Somalia, on the 26th of October 1977. The last naturally occurring case of the more deadly Variola major had been detected in October 1975 in a three-year-old Bangladeshi girl named Rahima Banu.
When were the last known smallpox virus samples destroyed?
The CDC destroyed the virus under WHO observation on the 24th of February 2015 after samples were discovered in an FDA laboratory at the National Institutes of Health location in Bethesda, Maryland. These samples were dated 1954 and had been found in a cold storage room on the 1st of July 2014.