We believed that what we learned from the coronavirus would help us better resist other epidemics. The flu shows us that

Five years have passed since the beginning of the pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2, the Covid-19 virus. In those first months, some wondered what lessons we could learn of past epidemics, such as the “Spanish flu” of 1919 that we could apply to the new epidemic.

The question now is another, the opposite, we could say: what can we learn from the pandemic that will help us with epidemics such as the seasonal flu. And above all, why It seems that we have not learned these lessons still.

Although the fight against Covid brought with it extreme measures such as confinement, measures that are neither necessary nor implementable in epidemics like the one we see every winter associated with any of the flu viruses, it is possible to look back to find measures that we can put into practice, especially if we present symptoms associated with the flu or a cold.

Perhaps the first lesson that Covid taught us regarding the flu is that it is possible to stop the transmission of this virus: the winter between 2020 and 2021 was the winter without flu: the measures to keep the spread of the coronavirus at bay made the incidence of the flu would fade away.

This had another impact: the disappearance of a strain of the virus, the one called B/Yamagata. The extinction of this influenza B lineage It is still shrouded in a certain mystery, but what we do know is that since 2020 there has been no news about this strain.

But the pandemic too he left us lessons that we can apply, if not in our daily winter life, at least when we notice the appearance of symptoms that we associate with flu or colds (similar but not identical), such as general malaise, runny nose, irritation of the respiratory tract or fever .

The pandemic encouraged the study of the transmission of respiratory viruses, of how aerosols containing these pathogens travel through the air. Some of this knowledge can be useful to experts, being extrapolated to other similar viruses, such as the coronaviruses that cause some of the typical colds of these dates and the flu itself.

Keeping distance is one of the advice that health authorities give to those who present these symptoms, something that can undoubtedly remind us of social distancing of the pandemic. The transmission of respiratory viruses is usually similar, and in these cases, keeping a certain distance from the other person can be helpful in preventing contagion.

Another recommendation that we can find in the guides is to properly ventilate the spaces. Whether in our home, offices or on public transport, adequate ventilation can also hold the key to avoiding new infections.

Of course, masks provide a physical barrier to the spread of the virus. Although health authorities recommend resting and avoiding going outside when we suffer from diseases such as the flu, masks can be of great help in cases where that option is not available.

Another useful lesson is in testing. Rapid Coronavirus tests were of great help in keeping the spread of the virus at bay and some tests soon incorporated the possibility of looking for the presence of other pathogens, such as the flu.

During the pandemic we became familiar with this type of rapid tests, now a lot cheaper and more affordable that five years ago. However, its current use may not be as widespread as might be expected in the context of seasonal influenza epidemics.

Similarly, the pandemic enabled new advances in vaccine development, but also laid the foundation for more efficient vaccination campaigns. Also what has been learned by scientists and authorities may be of help when dealing with annual flu outbreaks.

Forgetting what was learned

And why do we forget these lessons? Forget it’s part of our natureit may even make sense in many contexts, including Covid. Forgetting can make work easier of our brain, but it is also important for our mental health.

The process of forgetting is very visual: we associate the Covid era with images such as masks or empty streets. The memory of masks (or forgetting them) may be especially relevant precisely because it is an element that can make it difficult to spread the flu and other diseases of the respiratory system.

The lessons not only can they be valid when considering strategies to deal with seasonal flu. In recent years we have witnessed various bird flu outbreakswith the active outbreak in the United States among the most worrying. The virus has reached numerous people and, although so far no infections have been detected among humans, a few weeks ago the first person died as a result of the outbreak.

The ramifications of this outbreak have been significant. The outbreak has not only affected wild and poultry birds, it has also affected cattle and cases have even been detected in the country’s pigs. In recent weeks we saw that the virus was circulating again among poultry in Europe, so the possibility of this zoonosis continuing to spread is not negligible.

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Image | Anna Shvets / CDC