Modernizing stockpiles of medical countermeasures against smallpox: Benefits, risks, and knowledge gaps.

CONCLUSIONS: Despite the very low likelihood for a smallpox outbreak, the potentially large consequences combined with the protective effect of vaccination make maintenance of the smallpox vaccine stockpile justified and valuable. For vaccination in the face of a smallpox outbreak, a high efficacy rather than a lowered rate of adverse effects would maximize the number of lives saved. PMID: 26312493 [PubMed - in process]
Source: American Journal of Disaster Medicine - Category: Global & Universal Tags: Am J Disaster Med Source Type: research