Historic Smallpox Records Digitized to Aid Future Research

NDORMS DPhil student Rabia Khan has spearheaded a collaborative effort to digitise the last known naturally occurring smallpox outbreaks, producing an open‑access dataset that will support future epidemiological and disease‑modelling studies. The project, which brought together historians, epidemiologists and data scientists, systematically transcribed and encoded archival records from the final smallpox epidemics of the 20th century.

The resulting dataset includes detailed case counts, geographic spread, vaccination timelines and demographic information, all formatted for compatibility with contemporary modelling software. By making these data publicly available, the team has created a valuable resource for researchers investigating disease dynamics, vaccine efficacy and the long‑term impacts of eradication programmes.

Khan’s work demonstrates how historical epidemiological data can be repurposed to inform modern public health research, offering a robust foundation for predictive modelling and policy planning in the face of emerging infectious threats.