In the light of the recent worldwide outbreak of the Coronavirus, here’s a list of the worst pandemics so far recorded in history, and find out if there’s any hope for the modern man.
HIV/AIDS Pandemic (at its peak, 2005-2012)
Death Toll: 36 million
Cause: HIV/AIDS
First identified in Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1976, HIV/AIDS
has truly proven itself as a global pandemic, killing more than 36
million people since 1981. Currently there are between 31 and 35 million
people living with HIV, the vast majority of those are in Sub-Saharan
Africa, where 5% of the population is infected, roughly 21 million
people. As awareness has grown, new treatments have been developed that
make HIV far more manageable, and many of those infected go on to lead
productive lives. Between 2005 and 2012 the annual global deaths from
HIV/AIDS dropped from 2.2 million to 1.6 million.
Flu Pandemic (1968)
Death Toll: 1 million
Cause: Influenza
A category 2 Flu pandemic sometimes referred to as “the Hong Kong Flu,” the 1968 flu pandemic was caused by the H3N2 strain of the Influenza A virus, a genetic offshoot of the H2N2 subtype. From the first reported case on July 13, 1968 in Hong Kong, it took only 17 days before outbreaks of the virus were reported in Singapore and Vietnam, and within three months had spread to The Philippines, India, Australia, Europe, and the United States. While the 1968 pandemic had a comparatively low mortality rate (.5%) it still resulted in the deaths of more than a million people, including 500,000 residents of Hong Kong, approximately 15% of its population at the time.
Asian Flu (1956-1958)
Death Toll: 2 million
Cause: Influenza
Asian Flu was a pandemic outbreak of Influenza A of the H2N2 subtype,
that originated in China in 1956 and lasted until 1958. In its two-year
spree, Asian Flu traveled from the Chinese province of Guizhou to
Singapore, Hong Kong, and the United States. Estimates for the death
toll of the Asian Flu vary depending on the source, but the World Health
Organization places the final tally at approximately 2 million deaths,
69,800 of those in the US alone.
Flu Pandemic (1918)
Death Toll: 20 -50 million
Cause: Influenza
Between 1918 and 1920 a disturbingly deadly outbreak of influenza tore
across the globe, infecting over a third of the world’s population and
ending the lives of 20 – 50 million people. Of the 500 million people
infected in the 1918 pandemic, the mortality rate was estimated at 10%
to 20%, with up to 25 million deaths in the first 25 weeks alone. What
separated the 1918 flu pandemic from other influenza outbreaks was the
victims; where influenza had always previously only killed juveniles and
the elderly or already weakened patients, it had begun striking down
hardy and completely healthy young adults, while leaving children and
those with weaker immune systems still alive.
Sixth Cholera Pandemic (1910-1911)
Death Toll: 800,000+
Cause: Cholera
Like its five previous incarnations, the Sixth Cholera Pandemic
originated in India where it killed over 800,000, before spreading to
the Middle East, North Africa, Eastern Europe and Russia. The Sixth
Cholera Pandemic was also the source of the last American outbreak of
Cholera (1910–1911). American health authorities, having learned from
the past, quickly sought to isolate the infected, and in the end only 11
deaths occurred in the U.S. By 1923 Cholera cases had been cut down
dramatically, although it was still a constant in India.
Flu Pandemic (1889-1890)
Death Toll: 1 million
Cause: Influenza
Originally the “Asiatic Flu” or “Russian Flu” as it was called, this
strain was thought to be an outbreak of the Influenza A virus subtype
H2N2, though recent discoveries have instead found the cause to be the
Influenza A virus subtype H3N8. The first cases were observed in May
1889 in three separate and distant locations, Bukhara in Central Asia
(Turkestan), Athabasca in northwestern Canada, and Greenland. Rapid
population growth of the 19th century, specifically in urban areas, only
helped the flu spread, and before long the outbreak had spread across
the globe. Though it was the first true epidemic in the era of
bacteriology and much was learned from it. In the end, the 1889-1890 Flu
Pandemic claimed the lives of over a million individuals.
Third Cholera Pandemic (1852–1860)
Death Toll: 1 million
Cause: Cholera
Generally considered the most deadly of the seven cholera pandemics, the
third major outbreak of Cholera in the 19th century lasted from 1852 to
1860. Like the first and second pandemics, the Third Cholera Pandemic
originated in India, spreading from the Ganges River Delta before
tearing through Asia, Europe, North America and Africa and ending the
lives of over a million people. British physician John Snow, while
working in a poor area of London, tracked cases of cholera and
eventually succeeded in identifying contaminated water as the means of
transmission for the disease. Unfortunately the same year as his
discovery (1854) went down as the worst year of the pandemic, in which
23,000 people died in Great Britain.
The Black Death (1346-1353)
Death Toll: 75 – 200 million
Cause: Bubonic Plague
From 1346 to 1353 an outbreak of the Plague ravaged Europe, Africa, and
Asia, with an estimated death toll between 75 and 200 million people.
Thought to have originated in Asia, the Plague most likely jumped
continents via the fleas living on the rats that so frequently lived
aboard merchant ships. Ports being major urban centers at the time, were
the perfect breeding ground for the rats and fleas, and thus the
insidious bacterium flourished, devastating three continents in its
wake.
Plague of Justinian (541-542)
Death Toll: 25 million
Cause: Bubonic Plague
Thought to have killed perhaps half the population of Europe, the Plague
of Justinian was an outbreak of the bubonic plague that afflicted the
Byzantine Empire and Mediterranean port cities, killing up to 25 million
people in its year long reign of terror. Generally regarded as the
first recorded incident of the Bubonic Plague, the Plague of Justinian
left its mark on the world, killing up to a quarter of the population of
the Eastern Mediterranean and devastating the city of Constantinople,
where at its height it was killing an estimated 5,000 people per day and
eventually resulting in the deaths of 40% of the city’s population.
Antonine Plague (165 AD)
Death Toll: 5 million
Cause: Unknown
Also known as the Plague of Galen, the Antonine Plague was an ancient pandemic that affected Asia Minor, Egypt, Greece, and Italy and is thought to have been either Smallpox or Measles, though the true cause is still unknown. This unknown disease was brought back to Rome by soldiers returning from Mesopotamia around 165AD; unknowingly, they had spread a disease which would end up killing over 5 million people and decimating the Roman army.
You may be wondering why our “homegrown” Ebola Virus didn’t make it to the list well, according to scientist the Ebola virus, which has killed thousands of people, is still confined to West Africa. It may someday be pandemic, but for now, is considered an epidemic — and is therefore not included on this list.
MPH Online
