The impact of the airplANE can be felt in many different ways. Diseases and pathogens can now be spread much faster and further than ever before. Here are historical examples of how infectious diseases have spread through air travel that caused damaging effect to the world.
InfluenzaThe influenza virus can spread very quickly. Even though the death rate is low, it makes a major health problem for many countries.
The 1957 pandemic originated in mainland China and traversed the globe within six months mostly due to people traveling the world with airplanes. Even though a vaccine had been developed; yet it still claimed more than 70,000 lives in the US and many more in other countries |
HIV/AIDSHIV is a sexually transmitted infection that weakens the immune system.
Data suggests that between 100,000 to 300,000 people on at least five different continents obtained this disease around the 1980’s. Analysis of several of the early AIDS cases showed that international travel had a significant role in the spread of the HIV virus. |
sars (severe acute respiratory SYNDROME)SARS is an infectious disease caused by a corona virus.
On February 21, 2003, a physician from Guangdong who was infected with this virus spent one day in a Hong Kong hotel and spread this disease to 16 other guests. Within weeks, the disease had spread to over 8,000 people in 26 countries. |