The science of modern medicine may appear as sophisticated and technologically advanced to outside observers, and some techniques and pharmacological interventions lead to unstable outcomes or are difficult to forecast. Many patients are successfully treated by them. Yet there remain those illnesses which cannot be treated at all, and a significant proportion of the latter are the result of infection by what are known as viruses. The main imperative in approaching an untreatable virus is vaccine formulation development.
People may think that an ordinary antibiotic can kill a virus, but it isn't able to, since a virus is not like bacteria, in that it is non-biotic (i. E. It is not a living organism). Since it is a microscopic entity, it cannot be removed surgically or destroyed using other techniques. The only effective treatment is the use of a vaccine.
A vaccine partially imitates the virus in the patient's body, so that the person's immune system starts to manufacture viral antibodies. The body does this in response to the detected threat of the pseudo-virus (the vaccine).
These antibodies are the natural reaction to the viral infection. The immune system manufactures them in response to the virus' presence, and only the human body is able to do this. After the infection has been eliminated, the antibodies remain in the system, preventing relapses for the rest of the person's life. This is why vaccination has the potential to bring about permanent resistance (or immunity) to a specific virus.
This is the reasoning behind the vaccination of small children against well-known viral infections such as smallpox or polio. They then remain safe for the rest of their lives, because they already have the viral antibodies in their systems. A basic, cliched illness, like smallpox, may once have been a massive problem to the human population, and the most important intervention in their elimination was the development of the smallpox vaccine.
Some of the most serious diseases are viral in nature, such as the notorious Ebola, AIDS, viral meningitis (which sets in within 48 hours and has terrible symptoms), and, as stated above, polio. These are all potentially lethal infections. The development of vaccines to counter them is thus of extreme importance.
Over time, however, a virus may mutate and return to a medication-resistant state. It either mutates into a new genetic form (strain), or simply develops resistance against the patient's antibodies. As frightening as this may sound, it is an ongoing phenomenon, as seen, for example, in the case of the influenza virus, which presents in a new strain every year. There is no immunization process against it because it mutates too quickly.
But despite the possibility or existence of vaccines, people should still respect their health. The maintenance of a responsible lifestyle is important. Some diseases, such as HIV/AIDS, are entirely preventable through sound health practices. In fact, for some viruses there is no vaccine, and dependence on a medical cure is not advisable or even possible.
People may think that an ordinary antibiotic can kill a virus, but it isn't able to, since a virus is not like bacteria, in that it is non-biotic (i. E. It is not a living organism). Since it is a microscopic entity, it cannot be removed surgically or destroyed using other techniques. The only effective treatment is the use of a vaccine.
A vaccine partially imitates the virus in the patient's body, so that the person's immune system starts to manufacture viral antibodies. The body does this in response to the detected threat of the pseudo-virus (the vaccine).
These antibodies are the natural reaction to the viral infection. The immune system manufactures them in response to the virus' presence, and only the human body is able to do this. After the infection has been eliminated, the antibodies remain in the system, preventing relapses for the rest of the person's life. This is why vaccination has the potential to bring about permanent resistance (or immunity) to a specific virus.
This is the reasoning behind the vaccination of small children against well-known viral infections such as smallpox or polio. They then remain safe for the rest of their lives, because they already have the viral antibodies in their systems. A basic, cliched illness, like smallpox, may once have been a massive problem to the human population, and the most important intervention in their elimination was the development of the smallpox vaccine.
Some of the most serious diseases are viral in nature, such as the notorious Ebola, AIDS, viral meningitis (which sets in within 48 hours and has terrible symptoms), and, as stated above, polio. These are all potentially lethal infections. The development of vaccines to counter them is thus of extreme importance.
Over time, however, a virus may mutate and return to a medication-resistant state. It either mutates into a new genetic form (strain), or simply develops resistance against the patient's antibodies. As frightening as this may sound, it is an ongoing phenomenon, as seen, for example, in the case of the influenza virus, which presents in a new strain every year. There is no immunization process against it because it mutates too quickly.
But despite the possibility or existence of vaccines, people should still respect their health. The maintenance of a responsible lifestyle is important. Some diseases, such as HIV/AIDS, are entirely preventable through sound health practices. In fact, for some viruses there is no vaccine, and dependence on a medical cure is not advisable or even possible.
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