A benign, transient folliculitis following smallpox vaccination is one of the more frequent vaccination adverse events. A 2003 study of vaccinees at Vanderbilt University confirmed that generalized or focal asymptomatic papules and pustules can appear following vaccination. Multiple reports from vaccination study centers support the relationship of this adverse event to smallpox vaccination.

Patients present with asymptomatic or mildly pruritic lesions of folliculitis 8 to 10 days after vaccination. In all reports during the 2002-2003 vaccination period the lesions spontaneously resolved without scarring.