It was in the 20th century, that we had the outbreak of the three worldwide influenza pandemics, they happened in 1918,1957 and 1968 and are known to represent three different antigenic subtypes of influenza A virus: H1N1, H2N2, and H3N2 respectively. The 1918 influenza pandemic has been termed the most severe pandemic that had happened in recent times, although there is no universal agreement about when the virus started, what we are sure about is its worldwide spread during 1918-1919.
Source
It was highly severe as an estimated 500 million people were infected with the virus, and around 50 million people worldwide died as a result of the infection. At the time, there was no vaccine to help with protection, and there were also no antibiotics to help treat secondary bacterial infections. The control effects used at the time were limited to non-pharmaceutical operations like; quarantine, isolation, the use of disinfectants, the practice of personal hygiene, as well as limitations to public gatherings.
The most recent pandemic exposure was in 2009 (H1N1), considering the timeline of the occurrence of the virus, we would observe temporal and genetic reassortment relationships among each of the subtypes of pandemic influenza. Even if the 2009 H1N1 pandemic was a comparatively mild one, the events that surround its emergence, showed the unpredictable nature of the influenza pandemic.
While it has remained more of a general knowledge that influenza pandemics have been a very long part of human history, with some reports even recording it to exist as far back as 412 BC, it was not until the 1930s, that the causative agent of the influenza virus was isolated, with Koch's postulates being fulfilled.
Koch's postulate is dependent on four;
-1. The microorganism must be found in the diseased animal, and not found in healthy animals.
–2. The microorganism must be extracted and isolated from the diseased animal and subsequently grown in culture.
–3. The microorganism must cause disease when introduced to a healthy experimental animal.
–4. The microorganism must be extracted from the diseased experimental animal and demonstrated to be the same microorganism that was originally isolated from the first diseased animal.
You must at some point have heard about seasonal influenza, but that is different from this major outbreak of influenza being discussed here. Morbidity and mortality are highly variable, but sometimes, their effect could be so strong that it disrupts the health care system. The influenza pandemic, on the other hand, is a less common one and it is considered more life-threatening due to its relative unfamiliarity and the strong potential it has to create catastrophic impacts.
Seasonal influenza comes with a sudden appearance of, usually dry cough, fever, muscle and joint pain, headache, sore throat, and most times, runny nose. When the cough happens it could come very strong and last for 2 weeks or more, but most people would recover from the fever and other symptoms felt within a week without even seeking medical attention, but that is not a risky chance to take at all as it could on the other hand, result in a case of serious illness and eventual death.
Source
In most advanced countries, the cases of deaths happening due to seasonal influenza are often amongst adults who are 65 years and older, but even in younger minds, quality of life could be affected, absence from school/work amongst others.
While experts agree that, so much work has been put into the preparation for an incoming pandemic over the years, more work still needs to be done. All healthcare systems need to be able to confidently say they are ready to prevent and control the outbreak of influenza, as it usually costs lesser to make preparations than to respond to an outbreak.
The most effective way to prevent the disease from affecting us is through vaccination. There is safe vaccination that has been in use for a long time, vaccination is even more important for those who stand a chance of having a complicated case or those who care for/live with those with the disease. Specifically, WHO recommends annual vaccination for these set of people;
- Health workers.
- Pregnant women regardless of the stage of the pregnancy.
- Those with an underlying chronic medical condition.
- Children within 6 months-5 years old.
Conclusion.
While we remain hopeful and experts continue to work on prevention techniques consistently, we must get vaccinated whenever there is a call or advice for it. It is rather unfortunate that in this age and time, some parents still refuse their kids from getting vaccination when healthcare providers come around. Education about this nonchalant attitude has to be given to prevent future complications on our health, and more particularly, on the health of children and aged adults.
Conclusion.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK22148/
https://academic.oup.com/cid/article/70/5/951/5550918
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/kochs-postulates
https://portal.ct.gov/DPH/Epidemiology-and-Emerging-Infections/Pandemic-Flu-Facts
https://www.nature.com/articles/s12276-021-00603-0
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/influenza-(seasonal)
https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/8-things-to-know-about-pandemic-influenza
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/monitoring/index.html
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There is a lot of misinformation about vaccines, I don't quite understand the reason, but they convince many people with theories that keep coming up to oppose vaccines.
Most times, some informations even contradict one another, therefore leaving us more confused.