White Bluffs spokesman. [volume] (White Bluffs, Wash.) 1907-1938, 1927-02-25
SAYS PRESENT EPIDEMIC
IS NOT FLU OF 1918

Like the plaques of old, an epidemic
of colds, flu, old fashioned grippe or
some similar aiiment swooped down on
this valley the first of the week and as
result good many of the residents
were either in bed or huddled around
the fires indoors. So many of the child
rem were absent from school Monday
TINT the school board decided to dis
miss the two schools for the week and
there may be further vacation un-
less there is cessation of the epidemic.
According to reports the sickness is
quite general, so much that it was the
subject of an article by DR.. w. A.
Evans in the Seattle Times. DR.. Evans
said:
Drs. Townsend and Sydenstricker of
the United States public health service
are not able to decide whether the dis
case the newspapers and the people are
now calling the flu is the same or even
akin to the flu which swept around the
world in 1918.
For number of years they have
been studying the minor respiratory dis
eases such as colds, flu, sore throat,
bronchitis, and, to some extent, hay
fever and pneumonia, in broad sta
tistical way. In 1924 they had a re-
port on about five thousand cases of
minor illnesses made by about two
thousand five hundred reporters. Most
of these reporters, in fact nearly all of
them, were physicians in the Army,
Navy and public health service. Many
of the sick were these physicians them
selves, and members of their own
households. Until we get labratory
method of diagnosing flu from the COM
mon cold we will never have a better
lot of reporters nor better lot of re-
ports.
Yet this study leaves us just where
we were in 1918 1t will be renlen-
bered that in that year, and for year
or two ther-nfter, great authorities
made some foolish mistakes because
they confused ordinary colds and flu.
This report shows that we are still
unable to make this distinction. I'm
less we learn more than we know now
the next pandemic of flu will find
us unprepared even to diagnose flu,
to say nothing of treating and control
ling it.
The 1918 flu had tendency to cause
bleeding and RAPID accumulation of
blood IN the lungs. 1t preferred peo-
pie less than thirty years of age. 1t
showed no relation to season in its
prevalence. 1t was in Europe in the
spring, in Boston in August, in Chi
cago in October and had covered the
states by Christmas. What's now
called FLU has none Of those qualities.
But, on the other hand, careful
study of the symptoms on these report
cards shows that the physicians who
made them reported as flu cases which
differed considerably from ordinary
colds and ccughc. The cases called
flu prevailed especially in the last
of the year, just before and around
Christmas, which was not Y true OF
what they reported as colds.
The distribution of flu by age groups
is different from the distribution OF
colds according to the ages of the
sick, but at the same time the age
distribution of the so-called flu of 1924
was not that of the flu of 1918. The
symptoms of these cases of flu were
somewhat different from those of the
cases called colds. In cases where the
patient has more chill, fever, pain and
constipation the doctor called it flu.
If coryza was the very prominent
symptom he called it a cold. Drs.
Townsend and Sydenstricker thought
the symptoms Of this flu were little
more like those of 1918 flu than they
were like those of the disease ordi-
narly called cold.
1t is plain that not even the best OF
physicians can be certain that given
case is flu, or common cold.
1t is also very plain that much OF the
most important health question of the
day is the common cold and its klns-
men-coughs, sore thrpats, flu and
pneumonia.