Immunization Newsbriefs (c) Copyright Information Inc., Bethesda, MD. Brought to you by the National Network for Immunization Information (NNii). Visit NNii's new website at http://www.immunizationinfo.org.
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June 24, 2002
INTERNATIONAL IMMUNIZATION NEWS
"Soviet Smallpox Outbreak Confirmed"
New Scientist Online (www.newscientist.com) (06/17/02)
The Soviet Union was able to obtain samples of smallpox from an Indian man while combating an outbreak in 1959. The government transformed the strain into biological weapons that accidentally infected the town of Aralsk in 1971. The epidemic was caused by a women who became infected with smallpox when her boat passed too close to the testing site on an island in the Aral Sea. The fact that only three unvaccinated people died suggests that the government's response of re-vaccinating people was effective.
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