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Dr Shapiro completed his undergraduate education at UC San Diego earning a B S in Biochemistry and Cell Biology and a B A in Political Science He furthered his education at UCLA where he earned a Masters Degree in Public…
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Immunizations I: A Historical Perspective
Despite the dialogue and debate that surrounds childhood immunizations (AKA vaccines), one cannot deny the role they have played in our lives over the past century. Not only have millions of lives been saved, but mortality rates reaching 20% for both U.S. infants and children less than 5 years of age just over a century ago now just sit above 0.6% in both of these age categories. And while I believe immunizations are the greatest public health measure of this past century, my purpose here is not necessarily to further the vaccine debate but to provide some insight and information about immunizations...specifically, where they came from, what we have available today, and where current technology (i.e., computer, internet) may come into play as it relates to vaccines. So this being the first in a series about vaccines, I believe no better place to start but at the beginning.
Although one could probably go as far back to China in 200 B.C., the first documentation of immunization use can be traced to China and India in the 17th century. At the time, smallpox was a prevailing disease with a worldwide mortality rate in the range of 20% to 30%. But is was during this time frame that protection was found in vaccinating individuals with scabs from infected persons. Shortly thereafter, the Turks employed the technique of "engrafting"...where children were applied with cowpox taken from the cattle's breast...a technique that soon spread to England and France. But it was not until the late 1790s when Edward Jenner (who along with Jonas Salk and Louis Pasteur are arguably the three most often recognized for their vaccine contributions) performed the first immunization, via an inoculation, using pus from a cowpox lesion on a human's hand. Follow up assessment of the inoculated child weeks later confirmed the child was protected from smallpox and a new era of preventive medicine had begun.
Things remained relatively quiet on the vaccine front for about 100 years until Louis Pasteur developed vaccines against anthrax and rabies. And although what Pasteur actually created was an antitoxin to rabies...to be used after one was infected with rabies rather than prevent initial disease...the vaccine methodology still applied because of the extended incubation period of the rabies toxin. Ultimately, it is felt that Pasteur's work helped define vaccines in modern terms...where a small amount of either live (often attenuated) or inactivated microorganisms are administered to stimulate immunity and ultimately (and hopefully) prevent disease.
And while it is difficult to say one specific vaccine-related measure surpassed all others since the early 1900s, I take liberty in sharing a memory most of us have when we think of vaccines over this past century. It's a black and white picture of an auditorium filled with what at first glance appears to be hospital beds lined up row after row. But upon more thorough examination, these beds are, in fact, iron lungs which were used to assist polio victims in breathing...without them, death would often follow. Fortunately and gratefully, it is something not seen these days thanks in parts to the separate contributions of two scientists, Drs. Jonas Salk and Albert Sabin. And while it is true their original vaccines were not perfect in their design and complications initially arose, today, we may take great comfort in that we now have two polio vaccines to choose from.
So while I hope this provided some insight into the history of vaccines, I ask you all to stay tuned as the next in the immunization series will highlight the childhood vaccines we currently have available.
And for those looking for more on my perspective when it comes to vaccines, I certainly encourage you to take a look at some of my earlier discussions over this past year...(probably easiest to find by following the link http://www.dailystrength.org/blog?surface=index&user_id=160)
Dr. Jeremy
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It's impossible to rationally discuss vaccines with such folks, but there you have it . . . . I guess I admire your attempts, though . . .
At the same time it’s anathema to me to not vaccinate Clare. I can’t imagine how guilty I would feel if she got some preventable disease and died due to complications.
Thanks, Dr. J. for another great article.
Dr. Jeremy
That is what and how I have always viewed vaccines. In the name of being fair I always try to understand both sides of any argument but I believe vaccinations have ultimately done far more good than harm and find the debate surrounding them somewhat moot in light of the number of lives they have saved.
As for the nervous young mothers who think it is better for their babies to get whooping cough or diptheria than risk the 1:2,000,000,000 chance of complications, their difficulty lies in never having seen a baby die of diptheria or whooping cough, which babies often did. The vaccines have done such a good job that nobody dies of these diseases anymore -- except people in third world countries, and those who come here carrying the disease and spread it to unvaccinated children.