Smallpox, 1961-62.

Great Britain. Ministry of Health.

Date:: 1963

Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Smallpox, 1961-62. Source: Wellcome Collection.

16/80 (page 8)

There were scars suggestive of successful primary vaccination in this case. | Importation No. 5 This patient was an adult male who travelled from Dacca to Karachi and remained there for two months, awaiting passage to this country. On 27th December, 1961, he was issued with an International Certificate of (re) Vaccination against Smallpox. He left Karachi on 11th January, 1962, by plane for Beirut and there changed planes for London, where he arrived during the night of 11th-12th January. He proceeded by taxi to Birmingham and stayed with a fellow Pakistani. On Saturday, 13th January, he took a bus to the station and thence a train for Cardiff, arriving that evening. He had felt ill during the train journey. He travelled by taxi to a Pakistani restaurant and he did not leave these premises until he was removed to hospital. He occupied an upstairs room and remained in bed during the 14th January. On 15th January he was seen by a general practitioner who called in the Medical Officer of Health for Cardiff. The patient had a high temperature and an influenza-like illness with no rash. He was removed for observation to Lansdowne Isolation Hospital, where he was seen by a member of the Smallpox Panel. This consultant saw him again on 16th January when a maculo-papular rash had appeared. A clinical diagnosis of smallpox was made and he was admitted to Penrhys Smallpox Hospital, Rhondda. This case was virologically confirmed on 21st January. The subsequent development was that of benign confluent variola ; he gave cause for considerable concern but eventually recovered. He was discharged from hospital on 6th March. This patient bore no marks typical of successful primary vaccination but there were two circular scratch marks on the left forearm which were compatible with an attempted vaccination on the date of the certificate. Enhanced Airport Precautions Medical staff at London Airport had been paying special attention to flights from Karachi from the time that they had been told by the Ministry of Health of the first importation, and checking certificates of vaccination before that. By 12th January it was appreciated that on three separate occasions smallpox had been imported into this country since 16th December. On that day arrangements were made for the immigration authorities to direct all Pakistanis arriving at London Airport, and anyone else who had spent a night in Pakistan during the past 14 days, to the Port Health Authority for surveillance whether they had arrived direct or via a Council of Europe Agreement country. From 16th January, medical officers at airports examined all travellers from Pakistan whether they had valid international certificates or not and vaccinated them unless there was clear evidence of recent successful vaccination. If thus vaccinated these travellers were then isolated until the vaccination proved successful. If vaccination was refused, they were isolated for 14 clear days. The Eastern Hospital and the Isolation Hospital at Denton were used for this purpose. No further imported cases came to light. At Figure I, the impact of these imported cases upon this country is illustrated.