Open AccessA pandemia de influenza de 1889-1890 na região do Minho: o caso de Guimarães
Author(s) -
A. Vaz Ferreira,
Célia Oliveira,
Fátima Silva,
Tânia Fernandes Ferreira
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
cem
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2182-9748
pISSN - 2182-1097
DOI - 10.21747/2182-1097/13a7
Subject(s) - pandemic , influenza pandemic , medicine , geography , covid-19 , virology , disease , infectious disease (medical specialty)
Between 1889-1890, an influenza pandemic ravaged the world, 30 years before the «Spanish flu». Despite its importance, it has not been the object of much attention, due to the difficulty of access to statistical sources that would allow its study. In this article we intend to analyse the impact of the influenza pandemic, known as the «Russian flu», in the municipality of Guimarães, with special emphasis on the pace of the pandemic and on the levels of mortality and morbidity. It was found that the lack of knowledge about the aetiology of influenza explains the ineffectiveness of the authorities, but, despite this, it is noted that the impact on mortality of the 1889-1890 influenza was much less than that of the «Spanish flu»