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November 13, 2002
U.S. IMMUNIZATION NEWS
"Marylanders Test Vaccine"
Washington Times (www.washtimes.com) (11/12/02) P. B3; Babiarz, Liz
Several Maryland residents have volunteered to receive the smallpox vaccine in an experimental trial that aims to measure the vaccine's effectiveness and weigh the severity of possible side-effects in people who were vaccinated earlier in their lives. The National Institutes of Health is sponsoring the clinical trial, which will encompass seven study sites and test the response of 920 participants around the country. Roughly 90 Maryland residents are taking part in the study to determine whether people who were vaccinated for smallpox at some point in their life would be able to fight off smallpox infection if they were inoculated again with a diluted dose of the vaccine. "If we show 1-to-5 dilution of the vaccines works for those people who have been vaccinated and those who have not been vaccinated, we will have enough vaccines for the entire [U.S.] population," said Dr. Margaret Rennels, lead investigator for the study at the University of Maryland School of Medicine's Center for Vaccine Development.
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