Learn more about why the smallpox vaccine and needles used may leave a scar.
Having a scar is typically a sign that the vaccine was successful or that it took."
The smallpox vaccine was administered with the unique multiple puncture technique rather than as a shot.
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This technique caused the skin to react as it healed.
The smallpox vaccine, ACAM2000, is alive vaccine.
A healthcare provider would sometimes check to see if the scar had formed in about six to eight days.
This was a good sign that the vaccine had been successful.
If no sore formed, revaccination was sometimes recommended.
A smallpox vaccine scar usually appears round- or oval-shaped.
Its typically about the size of a dime.
Can the Smallpox Vaccine Cause Smallpox?
You cant get or spread smallpox from the smallpox vaccine.
Keeping the vaccination site covered reduced the risk of spreading vaccinia.
Its still often administered to infants and children in countries where TB disease is more common.
However, the BCG vaccine scar is typically raised in the middle and may have more rounded edges.
The smallpox vaccine is usually depressed, or lower than the skin around it.
The edges of the scar may be more irregular.
Some people are concerned that smallpox/mpox vaccine may lead to a permanent scar.
However, unlike the smallpox vaccine, JYNNEOS doesnt cause skin lesions or scarring.
Common side effects of smallpox/mpox vaccine include:
The smallpox/mpox vaccine is delivered in a two-dose series.
Smallpox itself has not re-emerged since the final case identified in Somalia in 1977.
Your dermatologist might also recommend ascar creamto help the scar heal and make it less noticeable.
Thanks to the success of a worldwide immunization program, smallpox was eradicated in 1980.
However, people who received the smallpox vaccine may still have a scar on their upper arm.
The smallpox vaccine was administered using a bifurcated needle and multiple puncture technique.
This caused a skin lesion, typically turning into a pus-filled blister and scabbing within a few weeks.
For most people, this turned into a permanent depressed scar.
The smallpox/mpox vaccine, JYNNEOS, does not lead to scarring.
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