According to reports from Kilmarnock, Scotland, in the eighteenth century, smallpox claimed the lives of 622* people between 1728 and 1763. The reports show us that almost 95 percent of these deaths were recorded among infants and children below the age of six years, and roughly two thirds of all smallpox deaths were recorded among those aged below three years. The disproportion between adult and child deaths due to smallpox was not unique to Kilmarnock at this time, as studies from Sweden and Switzerland show similar results; these studies and comparisons can be used to highlight the important role that vaccination has played in lowering the the infant and child mortality rates across Europe.
Share of smallpox deaths in select age groups in Kilmarnock between 1728 and 1763, before the introduction of vaccination
*The total number of smallpox deaths in Kilmarnock between 1728 and 1763 was 622.
The actual numbers for each age bracket are as follows:
0-1: 118
1-2: 146
2-3: 136
3-4: 101
4-5: 62
5-6: 27
6-7: 27
Unknown:9
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Royal College of Physicians. (December 31, 2018). Share of smallpox deaths in select age groups in Kilmarnock between 1728 and 1763, before the introduction of vaccination [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved September 19, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1107755/smallpox-deaths-by-age-kilmarnock-historical/
Royal College of Physicians. "Share of smallpox deaths in select age groups in Kilmarnock between 1728 and 1763, before the introduction of vaccination." Chart. December 31, 2018. Statista. Accessed September 19, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1107755/smallpox-deaths-by-age-kilmarnock-historical/
Royal College of Physicians. (2018). Share of smallpox deaths in select age groups in Kilmarnock between 1728 and 1763, before the introduction of vaccination. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: September 19, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1107755/smallpox-deaths-by-age-kilmarnock-historical/
Royal College of Physicians. "Share of Smallpox Deaths in Select Age Groups in Kilmarnock between 1728 and 1763, before The Introduction of Vaccination." Statista, Statista Inc., 31 Dec 2018, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1107755/smallpox-deaths-by-age-kilmarnock-historical/
Royal College of Physicians, Share of smallpox deaths in select age groups in Kilmarnock between 1728 and 1763, before the introduction of vaccination Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1107755/smallpox-deaths-by-age-kilmarnock-historical/ (last visited September 19, 2024)
Share of smallpox deaths in select age groups in Kilmarnock between 1728 and 1763, before the introduction of vaccination [Graph], Royal College of Physicians, December 31, 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1107755/smallpox-deaths-by-age-kilmarnock-historical/
