History of the Vaccine

The first vaccine, created by Edward Jenner, was used to fight against cowpox in 1796 in England. Though rarely seen today, cowpox, a viral infection, was contracted often by milkmaids before the late 1700s. When someone touched the udder of a cow that was infected, they could contract cowpox. The cowpox virus is like smallpox; however, it is not as deadly as smallpox. Smallpox is a virus that causes fever, vomiting, mouth sores, blindness (one in three infected), and a rash of fluid-filled blisters that cover the entire body. Those who survive the infection are often covered with scars from the blisters. The mortality rate varied between 20-30% for adults and 80-98% for infants.  

When Edward Jenner created the first vaccine, it was initially meant for the cowpox virus. However, it was found that the vaccination worked on the smallpox virus, as well. While it is not known how many people were saved from being vaccinated in the 18th century, it was found that the mortality rate decreased from 14% mortality rate (before the vaccination) to 2% (with the immunization).