Jenner and the Smallpox vaccine

The discovery of a vaccine to guard against smallpox was the first major step in counteracting infectious disease. This post explores the events preceeding the vaccine, the discovery of the vaccine and the public's reaction to it.
History - Medicine through time - 18th/19th Centuries


Vaccination is often confused with inoculation, as they are similar. Before the introduction of vaccines, inoculation was the best way of developing immunity to smallpox. Inoculation involves deliberately infecting someone with the pus from a person who only had a mild form of the disease, and hoping that the body would be able to fight it. By surviving the disease, the person could become immune to future.

The problem with inoculation was that it was very dangerous. People risked contracting a fatal form of the disease. It was introduced to Britain in 1718 by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, and by the time Edward Jenner (1749-1823) began experimenting with his theories in 1796 many people had become rich by setting up inoculation houses and charging for the service. These people didn't want to lose their business to the new practice of vaccination that was introduced by Jenner, which is one of the reasons he received so much resistance when he introduced it.

How Jenner discovered his vaccine
Jenner was the student of John Hunter, 'the father of modern surgery', who taught him the importance of scientific observation. Jenner lived in the countryside and investigated the rumour that milkmaids, who were exposed to the non-fatal disease cowpox, didn't get smallpox.


This led him to believe that getting cowpox and defeating it somehow gave a person resistance to smallpox as well. He decided to investigate by infecting someone with cowpox, and then testing them with smallpox. He chose a young boy, James Phipps, and tried the experiment. he found that catching and defeating cowpox did indeed give immunity to smallpox. Jenner wrote about his discovery in 1798.


Because cowpox was non-fatal, this was an excellent way to safely give any healthy person immunity to smallpox. He had discovered the vaccine.

Reactions to the vaccine
As prevously said, Jenner's vaccination method would put many people out of business. They attacked his techniques and spread rumours of strange and horrible side effects that could result from Jenner's discovery. The picture in this post shows the fears that some people had about the vaccine's 'side effects'.


However, the vaccine was so effective that the resistance was crushed. Members of the Royal Family were vaccinated, he was given £30,000 by the government (1802-6) and Emperor Napoleon even released a prisoner at Jenner's request!

Vaccines are used to this day since they became compulsory for all children in 1853. They have had an effect of great magnitude on modern preventative medicine.


Further reading:
http://www.jennermuseum.com/edwardjenner.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Jenner
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/edward_jenner.htm