Both Canada and the US stopped smallpox vaccines in the early 70's. And I think most countries no longer require it for travel either. It was thought to be eradicated in the US and Canada and I think worldwide as the mid-80's. ( I could be wrong on that)

As far as us old folks go who got it in the 50's I really don't know. I assume the effectiveness wears off but I don't know to what degree.

I started school right when smallpox vaccines were stopped so I am not vaccinated but don't partake in any activities that would put me at risk of monkeypox

I’ll restate — for those people who got SMPX vaccine in the 50s, 60s, are they protcted against MPX and SmPx? Does anyone know how long the smpx vax protection lasts?

Did anyone read the Sanjay Gupta, MD article at CNN?

https://apple.news/AuH8wHDfYTaahOJSnoyjixw

Here is a bit of it and you can read more at the link above or go to CNN

Dr. Sanjay Gupta: While monkeypox cases rise, why are we waiting for the cavalry to rescue us?

12:39 PM EDT July 31, 2022

It's hard to believe we are face-to-face with a new health crisis, monkeypox, before we are even out of the woods with the previous — but still very much current — crisis, Covid-19.

The pandemic, which has held the United States and almost every other country in its grip, should have taught us valuable lessons about how to manage a public health emergency, but it seems we are making some of the same mistakes we made not even three years ago, when the SARS-CoV-2 virus started to spread.

Testing for the monkeypox virus, once very limited, is now more available, but underused. The demand for vaccines is outpacing the supply. There are nearly 2 million courses the highly effective TPOXX antiviral sitting in the Strategic National Stockpile, but many health care providers are still having a hard time getting the medication for their patients.

We are one of the wealthiest countries in the world, spending more than $4 trillion dollars a year on health care, more per person than anywhere else. With all those resources and technology, it's not as if the United States is incapable of mounting a significant response to an emerging outbreak. And there is little doubt we will eventually do what should have already been done: declare monkeypox a public health emergency, appoint a national coordinator and mount a more significant response. But why do we wait so long, drag our feet and endure so much suffering in the meantime?

As I have learned over the past few years, there is a significant difference between preparedness and response, even though the two are often conflated. The United States is extraordinarily prepared, ranked No. 1 for pandemic preparedness in the 2021 Global Health Security Index.

Instead, we are leading in a different way. As of today, we have the most confirmed cases of monkeypox on the planet, more than 5,000. That is almost 25% of the global numbers, even though we are just under 5% of the world's population.

It is now clear: Preparedness alone does not guarantee a rapid response. With Covid-19, and now monkeypox, we were too slow to respond. It was as if we are sitting in a turbo-charged Ferrari, capable of massive acceleration, but instead only idling in the driveway.

Cavalry culture

Over the past three years, we have witnessed something counterintuitive. It was predominantly wealthy countries that were hit hardest during the Covid-19 pandemic. They had some of the highest death rates, despite their enormous resources.

While there are many reasons for this, including misinformation, lack of public trust, and the entangling of public health and politics, I think there is something else, as well: We have adopted what I call a "cavalry culture." We wait for the cavalry to ride in and rescue us, instead of taking smaller preventive steps -- such as establishing modern and reliable data systems, mastering our supply chain along the way, and acting early to head off the outbreak in the first place.

If that sounds familiar, it's because we too often do the same with our personal health matters. According to research published in The Lancet Public Health, nearly half of chronic disease in the United States is mostly preventable, with lifestyle changes. Even knowing that, however, the medical system is set up for the cavalry to come in with expensive medications and high-tech interventions, instead of providing equitable access and incentives for preventative care.

There are a couple of important axioms in public health. One is, by the time you think you must act to contain an outbreak, it is already too late. And, if you think you are overreacting, you are probably reacting just the right amount. In the case of Covid, and now monkeypox, we seem to have forgotten those basic public health principles. And, the real question now seems to be: When will the government finally hit the gas pedal on our highly tuned Ferrari?

I don't want to suggest any of this is easy. There are significant issues of uncertainty and unpredictability. Much like a hurricane forming at sea, we often don't know exactly where or how hard it will hit. We want to be measured, calm in our response and to cause as little disruption as possible. We want to be thoughtful and gather as much information as is available.…. continues

I dug into the scientific literature on effectiveness of smallpox vaccines given long ago. There was disagreement. One paper said still very effective after many years. Other papers had a much shorter time of effectiveness.

I guess if small pox was eradicated then there would be no way to really test if the vaxs we got still work. The old time vaxs were dead disease, that caused your immune system to develop anti-bodies. I don't see why those anti bodies would just disappear. My chicken pox anti bodies still work along with all the other vaccines I got as a child. It's curious to me the idea that the small pox vax would be good up against this new monkey pox. Something to watch for. I wonder what the average age of the infected is?

The earliest smallpox vaccines were based on cowpox. Monkeypox, cowpox and smallpox are all closely related to each other (and unrelated to chickenpox) so I suspect the old smallpox vax might still offer a degree of protection to monkey pox.  

BTW, all vaccines, dead, live, or anything in between, cause the immune system to develop antibodies. Both the smallpox and the chickenpox vaccines are live vaccines.

So, if you had chickenpox as a child, you would be immune to monkeypox?

Jane

"So, if you had chickenpox as a child, you would be immune to monkeypox"

Nope. Monkeypox, smallpox and cowpox are all orthopoxviruses. That's why the smallpox vaccine provides some protection. Chickenpox is a completely different type of virus, in fact not actually a poxvirus at all.

Read jmm1837’s post. Monkey Pox and Chicken Pox are unrelated.

"but don't partake in any activities that would put me at risk of monkeypox"

If you touch anything that someone with monkeypox virus on their hand touched before you (door handle, faucet handle, escalator handrail, elevator button, and so on), you are at risk.

There is no one alive whose smallpox vaccination was based on Cowpox. That was practically the dark ages. Smallpox vaccine was grown on animals in the distant pass. Not Cowpox. Smallpox. Smallpox vaccine is known to offer a certain amount of protection to Monkey-pox-a disease not specifically related to monkeys. It is an inconvenient disease in the main. Not something you want to get but...

I believe there a very few, if any, members of this forum that need to be concerned about monkey pox ... unless I misread our clientele greatly ... like having numerous s e x partners in a week.

S e x is not a necessary component. It is merely a common source of close physical contact and CPC is how this disease is spread. You could hug your infected MIL and get it. Just saying. People are being confused on this point

"If you touch anything that someone with monkeypox virus on their hand touched before you (door handle, faucet handle, escalator handrail, elevator button, and so on), you are at risk."

Share your source, please?

"Monkeypox can spread to anyone through close, personal, often skin-to-skin contact, including:

• Direct contact with monkeypox rash, scabs, or body fluids from a person with monkeypox.
• Touching objects, fabrics (clothing, bedding, or towels), and surfaces that have been used by someone with monkeypox.
• Contact with respiratory secretions.

https://www.cdc.gov/poxvirus/monkeypox/transmission.html

Here we go: https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/monkeypox-daycare-only-matter-time-193214353.html

The verdict is out on if the smallpox vaccine those of us got pre-early 1970's will give us protection.