The area where the shot was administered expands slightly immediately and over the following 6 to 8 hours.
After that, the edema goes away and the injection site seems normal. After 6 to 8 weeks, a lump that resembles a mosquito bite returns.
It begins to grow and develop into a tumor. It eventually cracks open, starts to seep fluid, and develops into an ulcer.
A scar develops as the sore mends. It takes two to five weeks to complete. The process of ulceration and healing may occur two or three times. It created a scar that will never heal.
After the early 1970s, smallpox was eradicated in the vast majority of the Western world. They did not need to get immunized unless they were traveling to an area where the virus was still present.