“Bill Foege takes us inside the world's greatest public health triumph: the eradication of smallpox. It's a story of true determination, passion and courage. The story of smallpox should encourage all of us to continue the critical work of worldwide disease eradication.”--Bill Gates, Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation “Bill Foege is one of the public health giants of our times. He was responsible for the design of the campaign that eradicated smallpox—the most important global health achievement in history and possibly the greatest feat in any field of international cooperation. His insights into the nature of this major event will undoubtedly help to meet the global health challenges of the 21st century.”—Julio Frenk, M.D, PhD, Dean, Harvard School of Public Health “The eradication of a disease has long been the holy grail of global health and Bill Foege found it: more than any other person, he was responsible for the eradication of smallpox from the face of the earth. This is a story told by a remarkably humble man, about the extraordinary coalition that he helped to build, and the most impressive global health accomplishment the world has ever seen.”—Mark Rosenberg, author of Real Collaboration: What It Takes for Global Health to Succeed “I am thrilled that Bill Foege, one of the great heroes of the smallpox eradication campaign, has written this important book. It tells a beautiful human story of an incredible public health triumph, and is full of lessons that could be applied to many of the global challenges we face today.”—Helene D. Gayle MD, President and CEO, CARE USA “Bill Foege’s House on Fire is the first-hand account of how a revised strategy to eradicate smallpox was tested, validated, and applied. Without the global adoption of this new surveillance strategy, the final deathblow to this longtime global menace might never have been dealt.”—Adetokunbo O. Lucas, MD, DSc, author of It Was The Best of Times: From Local to Global Health “Smallpox is the most devastating disease the world has known, as it destroyed lives and shaped history over the centuries. House on Fire provides a day-to-day account by my friend Dr. Bill Foege of the battle required to defeat this wily and diabolic virus."--President Jimmy Carter

This English language edition is far more than a simple translation of the work "L'Histoire des vaccinations" published in 2008 in the same collection. The French edition has actually been totally revised and improved. In particular, it features a chapter dedicated entirely to yellow fever. A greater number of illustrations are included. This book will undoubtedly be of great interest to a section of the general public and to specialists. The history of vaccinations is a significant phase in the history of humanity. With the development of hygiene, vaccinations have certainly been the most notable progress of medicine. Nevertheless, this subject which has revolutionised human and animal medicine has long been explored poorly or not at all. This oversight has now been addressed through this fascinating work. All translated Pasteur texts are from the original manuscripts found in his laboratory notebooks. Finally, the moral problems inherent in the use of vaccines are addressed and at times, appear strangely similar to current situations…

At the World Health Assembly in May 1980, the World Health Organization declared the world free of smallpox. Smallpox vaccination of civilians is now indicated only for laboratory workers directly involved with smallpox or closely related orthopox viruses. However recent questions raised by the terrorist attacks in fall 2001 have renewed concerns about possible outbreaks of smallpox resulting from its use as a biological weapon. In June 2002, the Institute of Medicine convened a public conference to discuss the scientific, clinical, procedural, and administrative aspects of various immunization strategies. Scientific and Policy Considerations in Developing Smallpox Vaccination Options summarizes the presentations and discussions from this workshop.

A history of the global spread of vaccination during the Napoleonic Wars, when millions of children were saved from smallpox.

Completely revised and updated, this respected reference offers comprehensive and current coverage of every aspect of vaccination-from development to use in reducing disease. It provides authoritative information on vaccine production, available preparations, efficacy, and safety...recommendations for vaccine use, with rationales...data on the impact of vaccination programs on morbidity and mortality...and more. And now, as an Expert Consult title, it includes a companion web site offering this unparalleled guidance where and when you need it most! Provides a complete understanding of each disease, including clinical characteristics, microbiology, pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment, as well an epidemiology and public health issues. Offers comprehensive coverage of both existing vaccines and vaccines currently in the research and development stage. Examines vaccine stability, immunogenicity, efficacy, duration of immunity, adverse events, indications, contraindications, precautions, administration with other vaccines, and disease control strategies. Analyses the cost-benefit and cost-effectiveness of vaccines. Discusses the proper use of immune globulins and antitoxins. Illustrates concepts and objective data with approximately 600 tables and figures. Includes access to a companion web site offering the complete contents of the book - fully searchable - for rapid consultation from anyplace with an Internet connection.

The Oxford Textbook of Infectious Disease Control: A Geographical Analysis from Medieval Quarantine to Global Eradication is a comprehensive analysis of spatial theory and the practical methods used to prevent the geographical spread of communicable diseases in humans. Drawing on current and historical examples spanning seven centuries from across the globe, this indispensable volume demonstrates how to mitigate the public health impact of infections in disease hotspots and prevent the propagation of infection from such hotspots into other geographical locations. Containing case studies of longstanding global killers such as influenza, measles and poliomyelitis, through to newly emerged diseases like SARS and highly pathogenic avian influenza in humans, this book integrates theory, data and spatial analysis and locates these quantitative analyses in the context of global demographic and health policy change. Beautifully illustrated with over 100 original maps and diagrams to aid understanding and assimilation, in six sections the authors examine surveillance, quarantine, vaccination, and forecasting for disease control. The discussion covers theoretical approaches, techniques and systems central to mitigating disease spread, and methods that deliver practical disease control. Essential information is also provided on the geographical eradication of diseases, including the design of early warning systems that detect the geographical spread of epidemics, enabling students and practitioners to design spatially-targeted control strategies. Despite the early hope of eradication of many communicable diseases after the global eradication of smallpox by 1979, the world is still working at the control and elimination of the spatial spread of newly-emerging and resurgent infectious diseases. Learning from past examples and incorporating modern surveillance and reporting techniques that are used to design value-for-money spatially-targeted interventions to protect public health, the Oxford Textbook of Infectious Disease Control is an essential resource for all those working in, or studying ways to control the spread of communicable diseases between humans in a timely and cost-effective manner. It is ideal for specialists and students in infectious disease control as well as those in the medical sciences, epidemiology, demography, public health, geography, and medical history.