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Edward Jenner (1749--1823) was an English country doctor who developed the world's first vaccine. His discovery of vaccination against smallpox in 1796 was one of the most important breakthroughs in the history of medicine and would eventually lead to the eradication of the disease in 1980.
Smallpox was one of the deadliest diseases in 18th-century Britain.
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Symptoms | High fever, vomiting, and a rash of fluid-filled blisters (pustules) that left permanent scars |
| Mortality rate | Around 20--30% of those infected died |
| Scale | Killed approximately 400,000 Europeans per year in the 18th century |
| Survivors | Often left blind or severely scarred |
Before Jenner, the main method of protection was inoculation (also called variolation).
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