Research, Has forgotten the pandemic of 1918-1919, scientific
milestones, 20th century influenza or global pandemics.
No one knows exactly how many people died during the 1918-1919
influenza pandemic. During the 1920s, researchers estimated that 21.5
million people died as a result of the 1918-1919 pandemic.
More recent estimates have estimated global mortality from the 1918-1919 pandemic
at anywhere between 30 and 50 million. An estimated 675,000 Americans
were among the dead.
All of these deaths caused a severe disruption in the economy. Claims
against life insurance policies skyrocketed, with one insurance company
reporting a 745 percent rise in the number of claims made. Small
businesses, many of which had been unable to operate during the
pandemic, went bankrupt.
Research on the Pandemic in the 1920s:
Many Cities in the US, made it mandatory for anyone that enters the city
to have a clean bill of health or they could not come in to the area,
Also all people had to wear a mask over there nose and mouth.
In the summer and fall of 1919, Americans called for the government to
research both the causes and impact of the pandemic.
In response, both the federal government and private companies, such as Metropolitan Life
Insurance, dedicated money specifically for flu research.
In an attempt to determine the effect influenza had different
communities, the Public Health Service conducted several small pidemiological studies.
These studies, however, were conducted after
the pandemic and most PHS officers admitted that the data which was
collected was probably inaccurate. But while there was a burst of enthusiasm for funding flu research in 1918-1919, the funds allocated for this research were actually fairly
meager.
As time passed, Americans became less interested in the
pandemic and its causes. And even when funding for medical research
dramatically increased after World War II, funding for research on the
1918-1919 pandemic remained limited.
Forgetting the 1918-1919 Pandemic:
Americans seemed eager to forget the pandemic. Given the devastating
impact of the pandemic, the reasons for this forgetfulness are puzzling.
It is possible, however, that the pandemic’s close association with World
War I may have caused this amnesia. While more people died from the
pandemic than from World War I, the war had lasted longer than the
pandemic and caused greater and more immediate changes in American
society.
Influenza also hit communities quickly.
Often it disappeared within a few weeks of its arrival. As one historian put it, “the disease moved too fast, arrived, flourished and was gone before…many people had time to fully
realize just how great was the danger.” Small wonder, then, that many
Americans forgot about the pandemic in the years which followed.
Scientific Milestones in Understanding and Preventing Influenza:
In the early stages of the pandemic, many scientists believed that the
agent responsible for influenza was Pfeiffer’s bacillus. Autopsies and
research conducted during the pandemic ultimately led many scientists to
discard this theory.
In late October of 1918, some researchers began to argue that influenza
was caused by a virus. Although scientists had understood that viruses
could cause diseases for more than two decades, virology was still very
much in its infancy at this time.
It was not until 1933 that the influenza A virus, which causes almost
every type of endemic and pandemic influenza, was isolated. Seven years
later, in 1940, the influenza B virus was isolated. The influenza C virus
was finally isolated in 1950.
Influenza vaccine was first introduced as a licensed product in the United
States in 1944. Because of the rapid rate of mutation of the influenza
virus, the effectiveness of a given vaccine usually lasts for only a year or
two.
By the 1950s, vaccine makers
were able to prepare and routinely release
vaccines which could be used in the prevention or control of future
pandemics. During the 1960s, increased understanding of the virus
enabled scientists to develop both more potent and purer vaccines.
Mass production of influenza vaccines continued, however, to require
several months lead time.
Twentieth-Century Influenza Pandemics or Global Epidemics.
This is just one reason why we all need to start to prepare. Emergencies
and Disaters are very real, and can come in the all shapes and sizes such
as:
Power outages
Water Line Breaks
Winter Storms
Wild Fires
Earth Quakes
Tornados
Mud slides
PANDEMIC INFLUENZA.
You can not count on the Government to take care of you and your Family.
For more Information on how to get your Emergency preperation started,
prepared.
