A Walk Through the 1918 Pandemic by Elizabeth Meshcheryakova
- Aspiring Meds
- Apr 27, 2021
- 4 min read
By now we all have heard about the ongoing COVID-19 virus, it's become an annoying topic of discussion and it seems that with the pandemic we have all become mini epidemiologists. Although now it might be hard to imagine, there was a more lethal virus just a century ago. Have you heard of Influenza?
What is Influenza?
It is a highly contagious virus that strikes your respiratory system. It dates back to ancient times and one of its most recent outbreaks was in 2009. Influenza, also called the Spanish flu, H1N1 A-type virus or simply the flu attacks your lungs, throat, and mouth. Most forms of this virus are lethal and symptoms include severe cough, runny nose, fatigue headaches, and a list of more.
Was this the scariest pandemic in history?
I’m sure your history teacher has mentioned the biggest Influenza outbreak in history and arguably the deadliest pandemic- the 1918 Spanish Flu. One of the scariest facts about this pandemic is the death numbers, it killed over 50 million people (some sources even report 100 million deaths) in less than a year. In all, around 500 million people have caught the virus and at that time it was equivalent to one third of the world’s population, so one in every three people were infected with it. Let me take you back to the spring of 1918…
The world war is at one of its worst points and by the end of it, over 20 million soldiers and civilians have died and even more injured. From a newspaper, you learn that somewhere in Kansas, USA there have been found several cases of a new disease found in military personnel. Even today, it is still a mystery where exactly the virus came from but some of the first record cases were found in the USA; some scientists even believe that the virus could have been transmitted to humans from birds and pigs. Later, as the US deports more military personnel to Europe the virus quickly spreads across troops and in multiple continents: Asia, North America, and Europe. This virus isn’t given much attention at the beginning and soldiers consider it the outcome of unsanitary and war conditions. In 1918, soldiers had already seen similar respiratory diseases through the war and believed it was ‘just another flu’. However, as the virus starts taking over the world, schools, movie theaters, and most public places close down. The virus spreads freakishly quickly through troops traveling on trains, fighting on battlefields, and simply walking on the streets.
The second wave (October and November 1918) brings the most deaths and is responsible for over half of the 50 million deaths during this pandemic. There still is no explanation to why the 20-40 age group was most affected. Since, viruses attack the weaker immune systems which are usually present in elderly people and babies, yet the more vulnerable ones are young adults and adults. By summer 1918 all of the world was wearing masks and other PPE, hospitals all over Europe, Canada, the USA, Africa, and parts of Asia were full of Influenza virus patients. The virus has reached an alarming level of threat, never seen before. Doctors received patients who developed a condition, now known as cyanosis which coloured their lips blue and for some their whole body turned off a purple hue.
Medicine was vastly different compared to what then, so despite the multiple attempts, scientists weren't able to create a vaccine. Desperate doctors, trying to help their patients, prescribed aspirin to help calm the symptoms. Although this obviously didn't help in the long run, some went to extreme measures such as inhaling “LIFEBUOY”, which was a popular laundry soap at the time. Not only did this not help with killing the flu it also presented many other health risks such as intoxication.
Wherever you lived, it was sure the virus was inevitable, quarantine has been introduced in almost all countries, and stories of survivors are proof of those horrific days. Alice Brown was one of them, in a 2006 interview, she told about her mother who died from the flu when she was only a year and eleven months. Alice remembers “She left three of us. I had 2 brothers.” Another survivor, Dr. Douglas Miller recalls, “I went to Sydney University [Sydney, Australia] in 1919. The university closed and the death rate was really high. You’d be talking to someone today and a couple of days they’d be dead.”
If you were to live during this pandemic, at the beginning of the year 1919 you'd probably believe that the pandemic is getting close to its end. Life seems calmer and less chaotic because fewer cases of Influenza are found. You would start to get your hopes up until in spring 1919, the third wave would hit and even if it won't be as big as the second one more lives will be taken. There still is no vaccine but now there's also a worry with the mental state of the world. War has just ended, Influenza has affected you in one way or another and there still is no cure. As bad as it gets, the virus finally calms down after the third and final wave; the year 1920 is considered the end of this pandemic. Although, cases are occasionally found in various parts of the world. Vaccine study continues, and finally in 1938 Thomas Francis and Jonas Salk (seen on image) discover what’s considered the first Influenza vaccine. Today’s version of the vaccine has been improved and has already been used to treat infected patients during recent outbreaks.
Conclusion
In conclusion, researching for this paper has greatly opened my eyes to how much we don’t know about the world around us and how much more research there is for us to do. Learning about the different stories from doctors, survivors, and soldiers once more proved to me how necessary medical research is and how much value doctors truly have. It was also shocking to realize how similar our pandemic is to the 1918 pandemic. So has history repeated itself 100 years later, or is this a strange coincidence?
Amazing article!!
It's a great opportunity!!! 😁 Thanks!
so informative!