Let's talk infectious diseases, the reason for vaccines: ᶜʰⁱᶜᵏᵉⁿᵖᵒˣ/ˢʰⁱⁿᵍˡᵉˢ ⱽᵃᶜᶜⁱⁿᵉ

Until 1767 people didn't know that there were two different kinds of pox - small and chicken. But in 1767 English physician William Heberden was the first to give a detailed description of the differences between the two.

In 1953, Thomas Weller, MD isolated the varicella virus from cases of chickenpox and shingles. But it wasn't until 1974 that a live strain of the virus was successfully attenuated for vaccine production. And then it seems like everything stalled...at least in the United States. A vaccine wasn't licensed for use in the US until 1995.

The vaccine for shingles was first approved for use in the US in 2006 in adults 60 and older. In 2017 the recommendation was revised to include healthy adults 50 and older.

{You can find all the sources I used by clicking here.}