The smallpox vaccine is one of the three Ministry of Health's efforts to control monkeypox.
Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin stated that the smallpox vaccine was still effective in protecting beneficiaries from the risk of monkeypox transmission.
"Monkeypox is still in the same genus as the previous smallpox, which was smallpox. So I said to the experts, if we were vaccinated against smallpox in the 1970s, the elderly had immunity and the smallpox (vaccine) was different from Covid-19, which down every six months," said Budi, Tuesday (26/7/2022).
Budi explained that the smallpox vaccine has the ability to protect the beneficiaries for life.
"So, the antibodies are there for life. For those who have been vaccinated against smallpox, they are relatively protected, then from the treatment there is an antiviral as well," said the Minister of Health.
Budi said the smallpox vaccine is one of the three efforts by the Ministry of Health to control monkeypox, which has the potential to become an epidemic in the world.
The disease control method, which is currently infecting 16,000 patients in 75 countries, is implemented in Indonesia through the enforcement of health protocol discipline, the use of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tools, and the procurement of medicines.
"The World Health Organization (WHO) advises the same, by maintaining prokes, maintaining surveillance, if possible, preparing vaccinations and treating them," he said. (Among)
