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I read somewhere that when the Spanish Flu started in 1918, it started out quite small and slow, then it sped up and ended up infecting 525 million people.(half of the world's population at that time) Could that be what's happening now with the H1N1 strain?

10 comments:

Joy said...

Yes, that is true ... however, those who have analyzed H1N1 say that the strain does not share the characteristics that made the Spanish Flu strain so potent and deadly.

skeptiko said...

We were just talking about this in my Microbiology class. The funny thing about the 1918 flu was that people started getting it around March, flu season however is usually around late October to February. The first wave that hit wasn't too big of a deal, people got sick and some people died. The flu receded during the summer time and it came back later that year during the fall and that was when it killed. So the question was why did it kill during the second wave but not the first, and the answer is most likely that it had some kind of mutation. What we're seeing now with this flu is that it also started late in April, and now the flu is receding. Hopefully it won't come back in the fall, and be a big killer, if it does, we better hope for a lot of Tamiflu stock, or hopefully people come out with a vaccine by early September at the latest, because we need about 4-5 weeks to build up immunity.

Cookie? said...

Well the 1918 pandemic did start out small like this flu, the only difference is that medical care was far worse back then then it is now. Now there are many plans issued by governments to handle the situation, thus the reason for W.H.O and the C.D.C. But if you want to prepare yourself so you can feel a bit better and enjoy the summer, then check the links below.
Most pandemics start off small, then mutate to something far worse and deadly. However there is a equal likely chance that h1n1 will mutate to something non-threatening. be prepared in case things go badly, at least then you will have the necessities for survival.
But relax prepare for the worst, and hope for the best. If it does happen it wont be till the fall. =)

dieselhj said...

the spanish flu, like this one, is a variant H1N1 (influenza A) virus. This could be the big pandemic we are overdue for. It will be determined by how easily it is able to pass from person to person. The reason this may be worse and faster than the spanish flu, is basically the travel that occurs now as opposed to 1918.

Henry B. said...

The current strain lacks a key amino acid making it deadly. Hopefully, it won't mutate.
I disagree with Dave. Viruses need hosts to spread. Generally, we can't contract infections nor infect trees. It's unlikely that we'd be able to infect or contract an infection from an alien.
However, if we could contract the virus, it would be really bad, since our current immune systems have built as we've evolved and would have no immunity to extraterrestrial viruses.

Dave said...

No. They all start out small with the first case. and then spread. You're thinking of an "Andromeda Strain" type which is weaponized, bred for the purpose, to kill fast and spread fast.
And this is my number one reason we should not explore outside of our own solar system. We have no idea what could be out there. If we can't even deal with the common cold what would an extraterrestrial strain do to us?

Ala said...

yes thats the reason there is so much frenzy abt this flu, but for now the flu is ok
heres more infohttp://www.ehow.com/how_4933020_avoid-sw…

xtina said...

I read somewhere that the swine flu isn't as serious as they expected and it's lessening. good news

FireWolf said...

They want to set up the new world order.

Mary said...

it couldd happen.

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