INFLUENZA EPIDEMICS.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 5121, 4 May 1927, Page 3

INFLUENZA EPIDEMICS.

THE THEORY OF IMMUNITY. ■ VIEWS iOF A WRITER. Sir Archdall Reid, in a letter to “The Times” on the influenza e-pi--dmic in England, wrote in February as follows: — “The disease is air-borne, for it tends to infect people in the mere neighbourhood of a sufferer. Probably the most infectious malady known, in a fe,w weeks it may infect a whole courttry and in a few months the whole globe. The microbes are exceedingly small, far fre’ond the ken of the microscope-, as indicated by the fact that they linger longer in the air and multiply very rapidly. “Influenza is of, many types—pulmonary, gastric, cerebral, etc. Usu'aliriy one type prevails for a season or so, and is followed by a different type. More rarely two different types occur together". None of them is. very lethal, except the pulmonary, epidemics of which, tremendously destructive, of wide-world, prevalence, and occurring about once in a generation, may be traced back for nearly a thousand years. The last three occurred in 1843, 1890, and 1918. It is calculated that in 1918 ten million persons perished, and probably in 1890 the mortality was greater. Now we reach significant facts; 1918 is separated from 1890 by little more than a Quarter of a century, but 1890 is separated from 1843 by 47 years. The experience of an institution, known to me personally, in which are’many elderly inmates, is typical of that of. the rest of the world. Almost all the inmates suffered in 1890, and many diedIn 1918’ not one suffered. In both epidemics the young suffered, but in 1918 the aged were almost immune. I know people who escaped both epidemics, but not one person who suffered in both. “Is it not clear that one- attack of pulmonary influenza usually confers permanent immunity against that kind, and that kind only ? As far as I know this is true of every other sort. Does it not follow, therefore, that what we call ‘types of influenza’ are really totally different diseases, linked by nothing more than a com- • mon name, as formerly measles, scarlatina, and German measles were linked, and asjmore recently typhoid and para-typhoid were linked, with the result that thousands of valiant men perished in Gallipoli ’ Lastly, is it not clear that an epidemic of the dread pulmonary type is as yet hardly due ? Yearly, doubtless, we shall have epidemics of minor types, till in 5, 10, 20, or 30 years he.nce, when the harvest of the non-immuhe is ripe and ready, the great pestilence will return to its dreadful reaping. The longer the interval the worse it will be.”