3 ms·

EDIT: I actually meant smallpox when I was talking about polio. That's a big error; corrected it above. Thanks rdl. I should have been more specific - I meant

EDIT: I actually meant smallpox when I was talking about polio. That's a big error; corrected it above. Thanks rdl. I should have been more specific - I meant that if we did develop a vaccine, then it makes following the [smallpox] example theoretically possible, but this is still extremely challenging due to the reasons given. Although you and I might have the vaccine, not everyone has it - not by a long shot - because not everyone is born in a modern westernized hospital. These people are protected by virtue of an extreme mobilization to literally isolate every single instance of the virus. It (hopefully) only exists in the lab at this point.

rdl 15y ago
You may be thinking of smallpox, which exists in one or two declared labs (and probably a few more black labs). Polio is unfortunately still "in the wild" in certain areas (Afghanistan/Pakistan/India, Sub-Saharan Africa), and had a bit of a resurgence lately. The Gates Foundation is putting a lot of effort into finishing up polio eradication. Relevant TED talk: http://www.ted.com/talks/bruce_aylward_how_we_ll_stop_polio.html http://www.ted.com/talks/bruce_aylward_how_we_ll_stop_polio.... One of the main issues is that the polio vaccine requires a cold chain (presently; I think they have a new shelf-stable one); the smallpox vaccine, at least one of them, does not.
- desigooner 15y ago
  FYI, there has been only 1 reported case of Polio in India this year (since January). It might be that time when Polio is finally eradicated from India http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/09/polio-in-india-going-going-gone.ars http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/09/polio-in-india-g...
  - briggsbio 15y ago
    And there have been dozens of cases of wild polio in China and the Philippines this year, and a current outbreak of 84 cases in Pakistan, according to the WHO. http://www.who.int/csr/don/en/index.html http://www.who.int/csr/don/en/index.html
scott_s 15y ago
I agree with that. Thanks for clarifying.
DanI-S 15y ago
Not everyone needs to be vaccinated for the phenomenon of 'herd immunity' to kick in: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herd_immunity http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herd_immunity

rdl 15y ago

You may be thinking of smallpox, which exists in one or two declared labs (and probably a few more black labs). Polio is unfortunately still "in the wild" in certain areas (Afghanistan/Pakistan/India, Sub-Saharan Africa), and had a bit of a resurgence lately. The Gates Foundation is putting a lot of effort into finishing up polio eradication. Relevant TED talk: http://www.ted.com/talks/bruce_aylward_how_we_ll_stop_polio.html http://www.ted.com/talks/bruce_aylward_how_we_ll_stop_polio.... One of the main issues is that the polio vaccine requires a cold chain (presently; I think they have a new shelf-stable one); the smallpox vaccine, at least one of them, does not.

desigooner 15y ago
FYI, there has been only 1 reported case of Polio in India this year (since January). It might be that time when Polio is finally eradicated from India http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/09/polio-in-india-going-going-gone.ars http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/09/polio-in-india-g...
- briggsbio 15y ago
  And there have been dozens of cases of wild polio in China and the Philippines this year, and a current outbreak of 84 cases in Pakistan, according to the WHO. http://www.who.int/csr/don/en/index.html http://www.who.int/csr/don/en/index.html

scott_s 15y ago

I agree with that. Thanks for clarifying.

DanI-S 15y ago

Not everyone needs to be vaccinated for the phenomenon of 'herd immunity' to kick in: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herd_immunity http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herd_immunity