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Anyone knows how the spanish flu pandemy ended
- Thread starter 98winds
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It killed everyone who refused to wear a mask when asked to and then fizzled out.
Easily Googled.
Easily Googled.
Interesting article on this topic: https://time.com/5894403/how-the-1918-flu-pandemic-ended/
"in order for a pandemic to end, the disease in question has to reach a point at which it is unable to successfully find enough hosts to catch it and then spread it."
The Spanish flu was also like most flus in that it hit hardest in the winter, unlike COVID which seems to pay no heed to the time of year. Furthermore, scientists still don't really understand why certain diseases hit harder in the winter and die out as the weather warms.
“The end of the pandemic occurred because the virus circulated around the globe, infecting enough people that the world population no longer had enough susceptible people in order for the strain to become a pandemic once again."
In other words, herd immunity. So many people need to get it and become immune that the virus has nowhere to go.
"Doctors expect the COVID-19 pandemic won’t really end until there’s both a vaccine and a certain level of exposure in the global population."
This is encouraging if a vaccine is forthcoming. Not so much if one isn't.
"in order for a pandemic to end, the disease in question has to reach a point at which it is unable to successfully find enough hosts to catch it and then spread it."
The Spanish flu was also like most flus in that it hit hardest in the winter, unlike COVID which seems to pay no heed to the time of year. Furthermore, scientists still don't really understand why certain diseases hit harder in the winter and die out as the weather warms.
“The end of the pandemic occurred because the virus circulated around the globe, infecting enough people that the world population no longer had enough susceptible people in order for the strain to become a pandemic once again."
In other words, herd immunity. So many people need to get it and become immune that the virus has nowhere to go.
"Doctors expect the COVID-19 pandemic won’t really end until there’s both a vaccine and a certain level of exposure in the global population."
This is encouraging if a vaccine is forthcoming. Not so much if one isn't.
It didn't, really, it was the first appearance of the H1N1 virus - or what today we call 'the flu' and which many unfortunately still die from each year. Circulating among humans for so long has made it slightly less virulent, maybe this will also be the ultimate fate of Covid? It won't be eradicated, but will fade into a less severe background illness after a number of years?