Title |
Age-Specific Mortality During the 1918 Influenza Pandemic: Unravelling the Mystery of High Young Adult Mortality
|
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Published in |
PLOS ONE, August 2013
|
DOI | 10.1371/journal.pone.0069586 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Alain Gagnon, Matthew S. Miller, Stacey A. Hallman, Robert Bourbeau, D. Ann Herring, David JD. Earn, Joaquín Madrenas |
Abstract |
The worldwide spread of a novel influenza A (H1N1) virus in 2009 showed that influenza remains a significant health threat, even for individuals in the prime of life. This paper focuses on the unusually high young adult mortality observed during the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918. Using historical records from Canada and the U.S., we report a peak of mortality at the exact age of 28 during the pandemic and argue that this increased mortality resulted from an early life exposure to influenza during the previous Russian flu pandemic of 1889-90. We posit that in specific instances, development of immunological memory to an influenza virus strain in early life may lead to a dysregulated immune response to antigenically novel strains encountered in later life, thereby increasing the risk of death. Exposure during critical periods of development could also create holes in the T cell repertoire and impair fetal maturation in general, thereby increasing mortality from infectious diseases later in life. Knowledge of the age-pattern of susceptibility to mortality from influenza could improve crisis management during future influenza pandemics. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
United States | 33 | 16% |
United Kingdom | 17 | 8% |
Canada | 8 | 4% |
Australia | 6 | 3% |
Germany | 4 | 2% |
Thailand | 4 | 2% |
Spain | 2 | <1% |
Netherlands | 2 | <1% |
Switzerland | 2 | <1% |
Other | 17 | 8% |
Unknown | 109 | 53% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Members of the public | 176 | 86% |
Scientists | 21 | 10% |
Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 4 | 2% |
Science communicators (journalists, bloggers, editors) | 3 | 1% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Japan | 1 | <1% |
United Kingdom | 1 | <1% |
United States | 1 | <1% |
Australia | 1 | <1% |
Unknown | 203 | 98% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Student > Bachelor | 44 | 21% |
Student > Master | 31 | 15% |
Researcher | 26 | 13% |
Student > Ph. D. Student | 24 | 12% |
Student > Postgraduate | 10 | 5% |
Other | 28 | 14% |
Unknown | 44 | 21% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 40 | 19% |
Medicine and Dentistry | 21 | 10% |
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 18 | 9% |
Social Sciences | 14 | 7% |
Immunology and Microbiology | 10 | 5% |
Other | 53 | 26% |
Unknown | 51 | 25% |