pandemic

Examples of pandemic in the following topics:

• The Spanish Flu

  • The Spanish Flu of 1918 was a global influenza pandemic that killed millions more people than the Great War.
  • In 1918, an influenza pandemic that became known as "Spanish Flu" or "Spanish Influenza" spread across the globe.
  • Allied troops came to call it the "Spanish Flu," primarily because the pandemic received greater press attention after it moved from France to Spain in November 1918.
  • The second wave of the pandemic struck in the autumn of 1918 and was much deadlier than the first.
  • Discuss the contributing factors that led to the Spanish Flu pandemic in 1918.

• Current Epidemics

  • An epidemic may be restricted to one location; however, if it spreads to other countries or continents and affects a substantial number of people, it may be termed a pandemic.
  • In the 20th century three influenza pandemics occurred, each caused by the appearance of a new strain of the virus in humans, and killed tens of millions of people.
  • An avian strain named H5N1 raised the concern of a new influenza pandemic after it emerged in Asia in the 1990s, but it has not evolved to a form that spreads easily between people.
  • The World Health Organization officially declared the outbreak to be a pandemic level 6 on 11 June 2009.
  • However, the WHO's declaration of a pandemic level 6 was an indication of spread, not severity; the strain actually having a lower mortality rate than common flu outbreaks.

• HIV and AIDS

  • While some of AIDS' initial destruction can be attributed to the slow process of scientific research, the initial surge in infections also illustrates how poor government response and slow flow of knowledge have exacerbated the spread of the pandemic.
  • HIV/AIDS is a major health problem in many parts of the world, and is considered a pandemic—a disease outbreak which is present over a large area and is actively spreading.
  • Sub-Saharan Africa is the region most affected by the global HIV/AIDS pandemic.
  • AIDS prevalence is distributed unequally across the world, with sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia experiencing the worst of the pandemic.

• The Black Death

  • The Black Death was an infamous pandemic of bubonic plague and one of the most devastating pandemics in human history.
  • In the Late Middle Ages (1340–1400) Europe experienced the most deadly disease outbreak in history when the Black Death, the infamous pandemic of bubonic plague, hit in 1347.
  • The Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, resulting in the deaths of an estimated 75 to 200 million people and peaking in Europe in the years 1348–50

• Ecology, Epidemiology, and Evolution of Pathogens

  • For infectious diseases, it helps to determine if a disease outbreak is sporadic (occasional occurrence), endemic (regular cases often occurring in a region), epidemic (an unusually high number of cases in a region), or pandemic (a global epidemic).
  • An animation of the plague that spread through the world during the pandemic in the 14th century.

• History of Bacterial Diseases

  • A number of significant pandemics caused by bacteria have been documented over several hundred years.
  • Some of the most memorable pandemics led to the decline of cities and nations.
  • One of the most devastating pandemics was the Black Death (1346 to 1361) that is believed to have been another outbreak of bubonic plague caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis.

• Occurrence of a Disease

  • Outbreaks may also refer to endemics that affect a particular place or group, epidemics that affect a region in a country or a group of countries, and pandemics that describe global disease outbreaks .

• Emergence of Viral Pathogens

  • When this happens with influenza viruses, pandemics might result.
  • If this new virus causes illness in people and can be transmitted easily from person to person, an influenza pandemic can occur.

• Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases

  • Between November 2002 and July 2003, an outbreak of SARS in Hong Kong nearly became a pandemic, with 8,422 cases and 916 deaths worldwide (10.9% fatality), according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
  • For comparison, the fatality of influenza is usually under 0.03% (primarily among the elderly), but rose to 2% during the most severe pandemic to date.

• Disease Reservoirs and Epidemics

  • An epidemic may be restricted to one location; however, if it spreads to other countries or continents and affects a substantial number of people, it may be termed a pandemic .
  • The World Health Organization declared the new flu strain H1N1 as a pandemic in June 2009.