Smallpox deaths per age group in pre-vaccination Geneva 1580-1760
In the pre-vaccination era in Switzerland, smallpox was responsible for a considerable number of deaths annually, with almost 98 percent* of these deaths occurring in children below the age of ten. Between 1580 and 1760, over 25,000 smallpox deaths were recorded, with over 12,000 (almost half) of these occurring in children below the age of two. When compared with similar studies from Sweden and Scotland during this time period, we can gain a valuable insight into the devastation caused by smallpox in pre-vaccination Europe, and the role that vaccination played in reducing the infant and child mortality rates across the continent.