History of 1918 Flu Pandemic

The 100-year anniversary of the 1918 pandemic and the 10-year anniversary of the 2009 H1N1
pandemic are milestones that provide an opportunity to reflect on the groundbreaking work that
led to the discovery, sequencing and reconstruction of the 1918 pandemic flu virus. This
collaborative effort advanced understanding of the deadliest flu pandemic in modern history and
has helped the global public health community prepare for contemporary pandemics, such as
2009 H1N1, as well as future pandemic threats.
The 1918 H1N1 flu pandemic, sometimes referred to as the “Spanish flu,” killed an estimated 50
million people worldwide, including an estimated 675,000 people in the United States. An
unusual characteristic of this virus was the high death rate it caused among healthy adults 15 to
34 years of age. The pandemic lowered the average life expectancy in the United States by more
than 12 years. A comparable death rate has not been observed during any of the known flu
seasons or pandemics that have occurred either prior to or following the 1918 pandemic.
The virus’ unique severity puzzled researchers for decades, and prompted several questions, such
as “Why was the 1918 virus so deadly?”, “Where did the virus originate from?”, and “What can
the public health community learn from the 1918 virus to better prepare for and defend against
future pandemics?” These questions drove an expert group of researchers and virus hunters to
search for the lost 1918 virus, sequence its genome, recreate the virus in a highly safe and
regulated laboratory setting at CDC, and ultimately study its secrets to better prepare for future
pandemics.

What different public health programs that were implemented to suppress

further spread of the Spanish Flu?

While the 1918 H1N1 virus has been synthesized and evaluated, the properties that made it so
devastating are not well understood.
With no vaccine to protect against influenza infection and no antibiotics to treat secondary
bacterial infections that can be associated with influenza infections, control efforts worldwide
were limited to non-pharmaceutical interventions such as:
 Isolation
 Quarantine
 good personal hygiene
 use of disinfectants
 and limitations of public gatherings, which were applied unevenly
  Officials in some communities imposed quarantines, ordered citizens to wear masks and
shut down public places, including schools, churches and theaters. People were advised
to avoid shaking hands and to stay indoors, libraries put a halt on lending books and
regulations were passed banning spitting.

 Additionally, hospitals in some areas were so overloaded with flu patients that schools,
private homes and other buildings had to be converted into makeshift hospitals, some of
which were staffed by medical students.

Opinion about the public health programs implemented during the Spanish Flu

Flu vaccines didn't exist at that point, and even anti-infection agents had not been
grown at this point. For instance, penicillin was not found until 1928. Moreover, no
influenza antiviral medications were accessible. Basic consideration measures, for
example, serious consideration uphold and mechanical ventilation additionally
were not accessible in 1918.4 Without these clinical countermeasures and
treatment abilities, specialists were left with not many treatment choices other than
steady consideration.
As far as public, state and nearby pandemic arranging, no organized pandemic
plans existed in 1918. A few urban areas figured out how to execute network
moderation measures, for example, shutting schools, restricting public social
occasions, and giving separation or isolate orders, yet the government had no
incorporated part in assisting with arranging or start these mediations during the
1918 pandemic.

References:
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/reconstruction-1918-virus.html#learning
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/1918-pandemic-h1n1.html