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Influenza

Influenza is a disease of the upper airways and lungs caused by an RNA virus. It is easily spread from person to person and spreads across the world seasonally in epidemic patterns. During pandemic years, influenza has killed millions, mostly the elderly, the very young, and people with compromised immune or pulmonary systems (e.g., organ transplant patients and asthmatics). Even in non-pandemic years, it costs billions in lost productivity and health care.

Large influenza outbreaks and pandemics are caused by antigenic shift, when two strains of influenza combine into a new lethal strain. This happened in the Spanish Flu of 1918-19 (which killed as many as 40 million), and is what scientists fear happening in the case of the avian flu.

Influenza symptoms include fever, headache, fatigue, sore joints, cough and sore throat, nasal congestion, sneezing, eye irritation, and extreme coldness. Since many influenza symptoms are identical to cold and other diseases, it should be diagnosed by a doctor. Most people recover in a week or two, but others may contract complications like pneumonia that can kill them. As many as 10-20% of all people may be infected with influenza annually. A quarter to a half million people die of influenza annually, even in non-pandemic years.

Influenza is also found in animals, and many of the most dangerous strains are antigenic shifts between a human and animal strain.

Web Resources On Influenza

The CDC on Flu (Influenza)
MedLinePlus: The Flu

Book Resources On Influenza

Influenza Virology: Current Topics by Yoshihiro Kawaoka
The Transmission of Epidemic Influenza by R.E. Hope-Simpson

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