Smallpox, sometimes called ''small pox'', is a highly contagious disease, eradicated since 1980.
The smallpox virus is kept in high security laboratories in the United States, Russia and probably elsewhere. This virus could be used as a deadly weapon in biological warfare or bioterrorism.
Smallpox is spread from human to human by respiratory secretions or skin lesions. It is possible to be infected by a contaminated object. The infected person is contagious for about three weeks.
The incubation of the virus lasts 10 to 14 days without apparent symptoms. Initial symptoms include high fever and headache. After two days, red spots appear, then pustules, beginning in the face and then spread to the rest of the body. The pustules become scabs contagious. These blisters can leave scars after healing.
Smallpox is fatal in more than 20% to 40% of cases and can lead to blindness. The survivors are immune for life.
Nearly 300 million people were swept away by smallpox in the twentieth century.
24 avril 2010
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