Casually giving some thought to Covid becoming endemic, and it hit me

[NickB79]

In 1917, influenza had been endemic for many generations in human society.

Then, in 1918, a new variant suddenly arose that swept around the planet and killed tens of millions in two years.

All of a sudden, this talk about Covid becoming endemic as a light at the end of the tunnel doesn't feel as comforting.

[Beachnutt]

1. Hopefully the Army is successful

with this super vaccine
https://www.cnet.com/health/one-covid-vaccine-to-stop-them-all-what-to-know-about-the-us-armys-super-vaccine/

[Ocelot II]

2. The H1N1 virus that caused the 1918 flu pretty much disappeared

and did not become endemic. A variant H1N1 turned up in 2009, but it was considered a novel virus that contained "a unique combination of influenza genes not previously identified in animals or people. This virus was designated as influenza A (H1N1)pdm09 virus." https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/2009-h1n1-pandemic.html Viruses mutate so quickly that it's hard to predict what they will do. The common cold is considered endemic, but it's caused by many different viruses, some but not all of which are coronaviruses.

[NickB79]

7. Apparently not

https://www.history.com/news/1918-flu-pandemic-never-ended

But every so often, direct descendants of the 1918 flu combined with bird flu or swine flu to create powerful new pandemic strains, which is exactly what happened in 1957, 1968 and 2009. Those later flu outbreaks, all created in part by the 1918 virus, claimed millions of additional lives, earning the 1918 flu the odious title of “the mother of all pandemics.”

And as far as I understand influenza subgroups, the different flu strains are all one viral species, just exhibiting variants through regular mutations to their surface proteins. Like what we're currently seeing with COVID.

[Scrivener7]

3. Yeah. I never understood why people thought that would be a plus.

[Hortensis]

4. We're apparently close to a universal flu vaccine if that helps.

And the enormous advances in genetics and vaccine development can't be overstated and will continue. We won't always need 4 vaccinations a year for this virus.

But it wouldn't be right not to be aware. The WHO's priority and high priority lists always have at least a couple dozen known horrific viruses with pandemic potential that could make Covid look more like the common cold in comparison. With planetwide disease-spreading as statement of populist resentment, we've been very fortunate and/or surveillance and containment have been very good.

As for 1918, though, not the same world. Those people didn't even have antibiotics. There's a reason the old saying "don't run with scissors" is an old saying; a puncture through the peritoneum often meant a horrible, painful death.

[Demsrule86]

5. and less three years after 1918, you couldn't find the influenza virus anywhere...they had to go to

Antarctica for samples years later. This is already passing...

[MontanaMama]

6. My neighbor who is a critical care nurse

told me that the infectious disease staff at her hospital are saying they fully expect Covid to be around forever. We will have to keep getting vaccines and boosters to keep it at bay. I don’t know if that’s the definition of endemic or not.