Studies on Epidemic Influenza: Comprising Clinical and Laboratory InvestigationsUniversity of Pittsburgh. School of Medicine
History
Studies on Epidemic Influenza: Comprising Clinical and Laboratory Investigations
University of Pittsburgh. School of Medicine
Influenza; Influenza Epidemic, 1918-1919
The reports from the separate communities were so conflicting that to
attempt to analyze them leads only to confusion.
No reports of harmful effects from the use of the vaccine were received,
and several physicians who attended sick employees say that, even though
the figures do not show it, they feel certain that the vaccinated
persons in general were not as sick as those who were not vaccinated.
On account of the conditions under which the vaccinations were done and
the reports compiled, Dr. Sherman has not felt justified in making a
report, fearing that erroneous conclusions might be drawn from the data.
We are greatly indebted to him for the use of his reports, without which
our account of the influenza epidemic in Pittsburgh would have been very
incomplete.
2. Another large steel corporation who used vaccine but asked that their
names be withheld furnished the following report. During the epidemic
the company offered free vaccination to its 27,000 employees and their
families. Commercial mixed vaccines were used, three injections given,
and vaccination begun on October 19, which was about the time of the
peak of the epidemic in Pittsburgh. The results include a record of all
employees who lost over six days between October 1 and November 30.
───────────────────────────────┬────────────┬───────────┬───────────
EMPLOYEES │ MORBIDITY │ PNEUMONIA │ MORTALITY
───────────────────────────────┼──────┬─────┼─────┬─────┼─────┬─────
│ No. │ % │ No. │ % │ No. │ %
───────────────────────────────┼──────┼─────┼─────┼─────┼─────┼─────
Received only one dose 3,895│ 511│13.13│ 31│ 0.8│ 28│ 0.72
Received only two doses 3,329│ 414│12.44│ 40│ 1.2│ 19│ 0.57
Received all three doses 9,897│ 468│ 4.75│ 46│ 0.46│ 32│ 0.32
───────────────────────────────┼──────┼─────┼─────┼─────┼─────┼─────
Total of above 17,119│ 1393│ 8.14│ 117│ 0.68│ 79│ 0.46
Received no doses 10,036│ 1522│15.17│ 154│ 1.53│ 106│ 1.06
───────────────────────────────┼──────┼─────┼─────┼─────┼─────┼─────
Total for both groups 27,155│ 2915│11.66│ 271│ 1.10│ 185│ 0.76
───────────────────────────────┴──────┴─────┴─────┴─────┴─────┴─────
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account