The Falconi's needle against anti-vaccination: A minimally invasive tool in the nineteenth century

Abstract

The history of Giovanni Falconi's career and his vaccination campaigns is two hundred years old. It is however very relevant today because of the widespread negative social opinion against vaccination at that time, opinions which seem to have re-emerged even in the current century. In his very important role of "Vaccine Conservator" (a sort of national supervisor for the quality of vaccinations), he clashed with the prejudice of the people and with the anti-scientific attitudes of some of his illustrious colleagues. He investigated how to simplify the procedure with a smallpox needle that became known as "Falconi's Needle" or "Falconian Needle". Falconi also made several experiments on smallpox vaccine preparation and was a supporter of the use of "animal" and "humanized" formulas despite the prejudice regarding the latter. Due to his profound anatomical knowledge and the strength of mind that characterized him, he was able to follow evidence-based scientific principles in his methods. Thanks to this he managed to convince people not to oppose vaccinations. He also succeeded in bringing the number of vaccinated people to exceed the number of newborns, a great achievement that led to remarkable progress in Italy and the rescue of thousands of lives throughout Europe. Unfortunately, it was not possible to find a copy of this instrument, which required the author to have the needle reconstructed.

Keywords: Anti-vaccination; Falconi; Invasiveness; Needle; Rubin; Smallpox.