Before the 1970s, getting a smallpox vaccine was a standard practice, thus many of us still have the little, circular scar on our upper arm as a reminder of that. This vaccination prevented smallpox by inducing an immune response to the dangerous Variola virus using live Vaccinia virus.
“The injection site will develop blisters that, after they heal, will leave a circular scar,” the original article states.
Due to the blisters caused by the vaccination that were administered with each needle prick, the scars are clearly apparent. There is a temporary swelling at the injection site, but it goes down to normal after a while. However, a mosquito-bites-like lump develops into a tumor about 6 to 8 weeks after the first infection. once a while, it opens up, starts to flow fluid, and develops into an ulcer; once it heals, a permanent scar forms.
Vaccinations stopped in the 1980s because there wasn’t enough exposure to the Variola virus, and by the early 1970s, smallpox had been eliminated in much of the Western world. The scar serves as a constant reminder of a terrible sickness that was previously prevalent.