Covid News Around the World One Year Later

[Gil Boyd]

COVID is of course a strain of the flu variant. This is in the same strain as that to the Spanish Flu that killed.
The 1918 Spanish influenza lasted from 1918 to 1920 and consisted of four waves.

The first wave lasted approximately from 15 February 1918 to 1 June 1918;
the second wave lasted approximately from 1 August 1918 to 2 December 1918;
the third wave lasted approximately from 3 December 1918 to 30 April 1919;
the fourth wave lasted approximately from 1 December 1919 to 30 April 1920.

It infected about 500 million people, roughly one-third of the world’s population at that time, and resulted in the deaths of 50 million, including 675,000 Americans.

The first public news of the epidemic appeared in Madrid on 22 May 1918 in Madrid’s ABC newspaper; hence, it became known as the Spanish influenza. However, there is no definite evidence of origination, and most epidemiologists and virologists believe that the virus originated in either the USA or France.

Comparison between COVID-19 and 1918 influenza:

While the 1918 influenza killed a disproportionate number of 25–40 year olds, COVID-19 mostly affects those over the age of 65, especially those also with comorbidities.

In particular, the mortality rate for the influenza rose to 8%–10% for younger people compared with a 2.5% overall mortality whereas the mortality rate for the 25–40-year-old age range is a mere 0.2% in contrast to the 2.4% overall mortality rate.

Those aged 25–40 year olds accounted for 40% of deaths from the 1918 influenza, whereas those in the 18–44-year-old range account for only 3.9% of deaths from COVID-19.

More countries were spared in the 1918 pandemic, whereas only the smaller Pacific Islands (Soloman Islands and Vanuata) remain COVID-19 free.

The mortality rate for pregnant women with the Spanish influenza was 23%–37% and 26% of those who survived lost their child, whereas the mortality rate of pregnant women with COVID-19 is unknown.

The Spanish influenza resulted in acute illness in 25%–30% of the world population, with over 50 million deaths, whereas COVID-19 has infected nearly 55 million to date, with 1.3 million deaths.

In the USA alone, COVID-19 cases are at over 11 million as of 16 November 2020, which is nearly a 40% increase from the month prior.

Second, the two diseases kill via different mechanisms. While those with the influenza died of secondary bacterial pneumonia, those with COVID-19 died from an overactive immune response that resulted in multiple organ failure.

Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) can develop in both cases.

As a complication from the influenza, ARDS had an 100% fatality rate compared with a 53.4% mortality rate as a complication from COVID-19.

The projected economic impact of COVID-19 on the US economy alone is a $5.76–$6.17 trillion decrease in gross domestic product (GDP), based on Fitch Ratings and the US GDP according to the World Bank. The economic data during the 1918 pandemic is scarce, but it was noted that Mexico suffered a $9 billion loss.

When one considers that in 1918 there were none of the public information systems such as the internet etc so news of the disease as it spread was telegram and little else!!
Here we are today with everything at our fingertips and we seem to have a comparison building up, on level playing fields as 1918.

Thank God for so many talented physicians today who together, came up with the vaccines that would have made Marie Curie so proud!!!!