The first recorded instance of the symptoms of Influenza was by Herodotus almost 2400 years ago, but the understanding of the disease was not discovered until much later. They knew what the symptoms did, but they didn’t understand it like we do now that the flu was connected to animals such as birds and pigs. In 1918 J.S. Koen, a veterinarian discovered symptoms of influenza in the pigs he treated with symptoms of the Spanish Flu that was devastating the world at the time. Independent researchers of this disease McBryde and Robert Shope, were the first scientists to study and begin to understand the disease. It was first identified in 1933 through the researcher's Wilson Smith, Christopher Andrews, and Patrick Laidrow. The first vaccine for …show more content…
In 1918 J.S. Koen, a veterinarian discovered symptoms of influenza in the pigs he treated with symptoms of the Spanish Flu that was devastating the world at the time. Independent researchers of this disease McBryde and Robert Shope, were the first scientists to study and begin to understand the disease. They took mucus from infected pigs and inserted them into healthy pigs. McBryde failed in his attempt, but Shope successfully reproduced the disease, proving it was caused by a virus. It was first identified in 1933 through the researcher's Wilson Smith, Christopher Andrews, and Patrick Laidrow. The first vaccine for the disease was created in 1944 by Thomas Francis …show more content…
The only other major case that can be compared to the Spanish Flu was the outbreak of 1957-1958. This had a total of 70,000 deaths in the United States and was mostly in the elderly. The Spanish Flu was much more severe and killed many young people. The total mortality count in the United States was 675,000 dead, a much more severe number.

The death toll was so much higher according to results taken, because young adults who were usually more immune to flu outbreaks had very high death rates. Instead of the usual U in death rates of youngest to oldest where only the very young and very old died the Spanish flu had a W death rate where many adults died from the disease.

There were also many new larger cities that would be considered unsanitary as compared today and dirty cities full of people easily spread the disease while the flu struggled to travel in rural areas.