Hello Thinkers! Welcome to Critically Selected, your one-stop-shop for educational topics on
anything and everything! The recent Covid-19 Pandemic seems to have us all on the ropes. But
as deadly as it may be, it doesn’t hold a candle to some of the world’s major Pandemics that have
occurred before it. Today we will be looking at some of the deadliest pandemics that will make the
Corona-Virus Disease of 2019 feel like a common cold! But before we begin, make sure to Subscribe
to our channel and comment down below on what you would like to see next on Critically Selected!
So, what is a pandemic? According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a pandemic
is the worldwide spread of a new disease. In other words, a Pandemic affects a significant
portion of the population and spreads across a considerable geographic range.
With this in mind, let’s dive into some of the world’s deadliest pandemics throughout history.
The first of these Pandemics was called the Antonine plague, also known as the Antonine
pest or the Galenian plague. It affected the Roman Empire in second century AD taking place at the
end of the reign of the Antonine Dynasty. Although the exact origin of this plague is unknown,
it most likely emerged in China shortly before 166 CE. It spreaded westward along the Silk Road
by trading ships headed for Rome. Sometime during this period, the Roman military also came into
contact with the disease during the siege of Seleucia, a major city on the Tigris River.
The Symptoms that accompanied this Plague included fever, vomiting, thirstiness, swollen throat,
coughing, and diarrhea. The fact that diarrhea appeared blackish in most cases suggested
gastrointestinal bleeding for the victims of this plague. Furthermore, skin rash also developed over
the entire body of the infected accompanied by red and black papules. According to many Historians,
the plague could have been what we recognize today as hemorrhagic smallpox.
It has been estimated that the Antonine plague affected between
7% to 10% of the Empire’s population of approximately 50 million people at that time.
This suggests that the Antonine Plague may have killed over 5 million people in the Roman Empire.
The Plague of Justinian or Justinianic Plague was a contagious disease caused by bacterium Yersinia
pestis. The disease afflicted the entire Mediterranean Basin, Europe, and the Near
East. It severely affected the Sasanian Empire and the Roman Empire especially its capital,
Constantinople. It is named after the Roman emperor in Constantinople, Justinian I.
Based upon DNA analysis of bones found in graves, the plague that struck the Byzantine
Empire during the reign of Justinian I was bubonic, although it was very
probable that the other two types of plague, pneumonic and septicemic, were also present.
Originating in China and northeast India, the plague was carried to the Great Lakes region of
Africa via overland and sea trade routes. The point of origin for Justinian’s plague was Egypt.
It is believed that the transmission of this plague was through black rats and fleas which
traveled on the grain ships and carts sent to Constantinople as a tribute. This is because
North Africa, in the 8th century CE, was the primary source of grain for the empire,
along with a number of different commodities. Stored in vast warehouses, the grain provided a
perfect breeding ground for fleas and rats, which was crucial to the transmission of this plague.
The symptoms of this plague are not exactly known, but Scientists have identified it to
be similar to the bubonic plague or the Black Death that came after the plague of Justinian.
Some of the symptoms included fever, headache, chills, swollen or tender lymph nodes,
abdominal pain, and gangrene. Many suffered for days before death,
while others died almost immediately after the onset of the symptoms.
Recent studies have shown the death toll of this Plague to be anywhere between 25 to 50
million people. This puts the daily death rate around 5,000 people per day during the outbreak!
The Black Death, also known as the Bubonic Plague, was the deadliest global pandemic
that struck Europe and Asia in the mid-1300s. The plague most likely originated in Central Asia or
East Asia, from where it traveled along the Silk Road, reaching Crimea by 1347.
From there, it was most likely carried by fleas living on the black rats that
traveled on Genoese merchant ships. It spread throughout the Mediterranean Basin along with
Africa, Western Asia, and the rest of Europe via Constantinople, Sicily, and the Italian Peninsula.
Symptoms of the plague included fever, headaches, painful aching joints, nausea, and vomiting.
Contemporary accounts of this pandemic are varied and often imprecise. But the most commonly noted
symptom was the appearance of buboes in the groin, neck, and armpits, which oozed pus and
bled when opened. This was followed by acute fever and vomiting of blood. Most victims died
two to seven days after the initial infection. Freckle-like spots and rashes, which could have
been caused by flea-bites, were also identified as another potential sign of this plague.
The Bubonic Plague was a huge disaster after the Great Famine that affected Europe during the
Late Middle Ages. It is estimated to have killed anywhere from 30% to 60 % of Europe's population.
In total, the plague may have reduced the world population from an estimated
475 million to about 350 million in the 14th century. It took until 1500 for the European
population to recover from this disastrous pandemic and regain the levels of 1300.
Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by one of two virus variants,
Variola major and Variola minor. The origin of smallpox is unknown. However, it is thought to
date back to the Egyptian Empire around the 3rd century BCE, based on a smallpox-like
rash found on three mummies. The earliest written description of a disease that resembles smallpox
appeared in China in the 4th century CE. The initial symptoms of smallpox included
high fever, head and body aches, and sometimes vomiting.
Furthermore, rashes developed as small red spots on the tongue and in the mouth of the victims.
These spots then changed into sores that usually broke open and spread large amounts
of the virus into the mouth and throat. Once the sores in the mouth started breaking down,
rashes appeared on the skin, starting on the face and spreading to the entire body within 24 hours.
Smallpox mainly spread by direct and fairly prolonged face-to-face contact between people.
People became contagious once the first sores appeared in their mouth and throat. The virus
spread from person to person via coughing and sneezing much like the Coronavirus of 2019.
It is estimated to have claimed around 56 million lives in the 15th century
and is the first virus pandemic to have been ended by a vaccine.
The Spanish Flu was first observed in Europe, the United States, and parts of Asia before swiftly
spreading across the world. It was caused by an H1N1 virus with genes of avian origin.
Although there is no universal consensus regarding where the virus originated,
it spread worldwide from 1918 to 1919. Influenza, or flu, is a virus that attacks
the respiratory system. The flu virus is highly contagious. When an infected person coughs,
sneezes or talks, respiratory droplets are generated and transmitted into the air,
and can then can be inhaled by anyone nearby. Additionally, a person who touches something
containing the virus can immediately become infected by touching their eyes, nose, or mouth.
It is estimated that about 500 million people or one-third of the world’s population became
infected with this virus. The number of deaths was estimated to be at least 50 million worldwide.
Mortality was high in people younger than 5 years old, 20 to 40 years old, and 65 years and older.
The high mortality in healthy people, including those in the 20 to 40 year age group,
was a unique feature of this pandemic. While the 1918 H1N1 virus has been
synthesized and evaluated, the properties that made it so devastating are not well understood.
When this flu first hit, doctors and scientists were unsure what caused it and how to treat it.
Unlike today, there were no effective vaccines or antivirals. The first licensed flu vaccine
appeared in America in the 1940s. By the following decade, vaccine manufacturers could routinely
produce vaccines that would help control and prevent future pandemics like this one.
HIV or Human immunodeficiency virus is a virus that spreads from person to person through body
fluids. The virus attacks your body’s natural defense system weakening the immune system. People
are most often infected with HIV through sexual intercourse or shared intranasal or injectable
drug use. HIV can also be passed from a mother to a child during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
If left untreated, HIV weakens the person’s immune system to the point that it can no
longer fight off serious infections. The risk of certain types of cancers can also increase.
When a person becomes sick with these infections and these types of cancer,
they are said to have “Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome” more commonly known as AIDS.
It is widely believed that HIV originated in Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of Congo
around 1920 when HIV crossed species from chimpanzees to humans. Up until the 1980s,
we do not know how many people were infected with HIV or developed AIDS. This is also
because the transmission of HIV/AIDS was not accompanied by any noticeable signs or symptoms.
While sporadic cases of AIDS were documented before 1970, available data suggests that it may
have started in the mid-to-late 1970s. By 1980, HIV may have already spread to North America,
South America, Europe, Africa, and Australia. In this period, between 100,000 and 300,000
people could have already been infected. Current estimates show that HIV/AIDS may have
claimed anywhere between 25 to 35 million lives ever since its spread around the world in the
19th century. There is currently no cure for HIV, but medication can control the virus. Anti-HIV
medication allows a person living with HIV to enjoy a long and healthy life in many cases.
If medication is taken properly, it also lessens the risks of passing the virus along to others.
Well, these were our top picks for the world’s deadliest pandemics that have occurred throughout
history. Did we miss any other major ones? Let us know your thoughts in the comments
down below and if you like this video, make sure to hit the like button and subscribe
to our channel for more awesome content! Until then, we'll see you in the next one!