The FBI and CDC are investigating after 15 vials labeled 'smallpox' were discovered at a lab outside Philadelphia.
Smallpox, a deadly contagious disease caused by the variola virus, killed millions of people around the world before it was eradicated some decades ago.
The most common and severe form of smallpox, variola major, had a fatality rate of around 30 percent, according to the U.S.Symptoms begin around 12 to 14 days after exposure, and usually start as a high fever and severe headache and backache, the FDA states. Patients then erupt in a blistery rash that scabs over after a couple of weeks.
Smallpox can be spread from person to person through sneezing, coughing, breathing, contact with scabs or fluid from the rash blisters, and even from touching a patient's personal items, according to University of Michigan Health. There is no proven effective treatment for smallpox once someone contracts it. Vaccines can be used to prevent smallpox. The first vaccine was developed in 1796 by the British physician Edward Jenner.
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