Table 2.
Differences between Smallpox, polio and measles eradication programs
| Smallpox | Polio | Measles | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Biological and technical feasibility | |||
| Etiologic agent | Virus | Virus | Virus |
| Nonhuman reservoir | No | No | No |
| Effective intervention tool | Smallpox vaccine | Oral vaccine | Injectable vaccine |
| Simple/practical diagnostic | Clinical diagnosis, confirmed by microscopy (If needed) | Stool culture | IgM |
| Sensitive surveillance | Facility and community based | Facility-based | Facility based |
| Field-proven strategies | Americas, West Africa | Americas | Americas |
| Cost and Benefits | |||
| Cases averted per year | >100,000 | 350,000 | >100,000,000 |
| Coincident benefits | Creation of Expanded Programme on Immunization | Improved immunization and bio-surveillance | Improved routine immunization and surveillance |
| Intangible benefits | Culture of prevention and social equity | Culture of prevention and social equity | Culture of prevention and social equity |
| Estimated annual direct global savings | >$100 million per year; averted | US$1.5 billion | >US$2 billion |
| Estimated total external financing | c. $100-125 million | US$2.0-2.5 billion (as of 2000) | $7.8 billion [39] |
| Social and political considerations | |||
| Political commitment (endemic/industrial countries) | Variable/strong | Variable/strong | Variable |
| Social support (endemic/industrial countries) | Variable/strong | Variable/strong | Variable |
| Core partnerships and advocates | WHO, CDC | WHO, Rotary, CDC, UNICEF | WHO, CDC, UNICEF, American Red Cross, UN Foundation |
| Technical consensus | WHA resolutions | World Health Assembly | Regional resolutions |
Note: The first and third columns are reproduced from R. B. Aylward et al., “When is a Disease Eradicable? 100 Years of Lessons Learned”. The second and fourth columns have been added for this article.