User talk:71.211.52.34

I came across this passage and was struck by the relative numbers and question their veracity. In 1958 there were 763,094 cases of measles in the US, with 552 deaths, and the US population at the time was 175 million. If my rough calculations are correct, in order for the final statement in this segment to be true, that the vaccine prevents a million deaths a year, infection rates would have to soar and/or death rates would have to soar and/or the world population would have to be much larger than current estimates.

"In 1958, there were 763,094 cases of measles in the United States; 552 deaths resulted.[23][24] After the introduction of new vaccines, the number of cases dropped to fewer than 150 per year (median of 56).[24] In early 2008, there were 64 suspected cases of measles. Fifty-four of those infections were associated with importation from another country, although only 13% were actually acquired outside the United States; 63 of the 64 individuals either had never been vaccinated against measles or were uncertain whether they had been vaccinated.[24]

Vaccines led to the eradication of smallpox, one of the most contagious and deadly diseases in humans.[25] Other diseases such as rubella, polio, measles, mumps, chickenpox, and typhoid are nowhere near as common as they were a hundred years ago thanks to widespread vaccination programs. As long as the vast majority of people are vaccinated, it is much more difficult for an outbreak of disease to occur, let alone spread. This effect is called herd immunity. Polio, which is transmitted only between humans, is targeted by an extensive eradication campaign that has seen endemic polio restricted to only parts of three countries (Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Pakistan).[26] However, the difficulty of reaching all children as well as cultural misunderstandings have caused the anticipated eradication date to be missed several times.

Vaccines also help prevent the development of antibiotic resistance. For example, by greatly reducing the incidence of pneumonia caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, vaccine programs have greatly reduced the prevalence of infections resistant to penicillin or other first-line antibiotics.[27]

The measles vaccine is estimated to prevent 1 million deaths every year."