Vitalis Die Spanische Grippe

Just as World War I is coming to an end in 1918, a deadly plague gains momentum – the legendary pandemic of the Spanish flu. Day by day, the army of the dead grows, with epidemiologists later estimating that 20 to 50 million people worldwide fell victim to the flu. The richly illustrated volume by medical historian Harald Salfellner illustrates the epidemic in its global contexts and impacts. In 35 chapters, the author describes the unclear origins, the course of the individual waves, and the clinical picture of the feared pneumonia, to which doctors at the time were largely helpless, the agonizing deaths of young civilians and soldiers, and the dying of mothers with infants in their arms. Among the dead are also thousands of doctors and nurses who succumbed to the virus while practicing their profession. With more than 280 illustrations, this volume is a fascinating journey through the sites of this greatest health catastrophe in human history. The present second edition of the work has been updated and expanded with numerous references to the COVID-19 pandemic.