Revisiting Traditional Chinese Medicine in Hong Kong during the Influenza Epidemics in the 1950s and 1960s.

This paper examines the supply and utilization of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in Hong Kong during the influenza epidemics of the 1950s and 1960s. Existing narratives of TCM in Hong Kong have predominantly framed with within the dichotomy of Western medicine "Xiyi" and Chinese medicine "Zhongyi," portraying TCM as marginalized and nearly wiped out by colonial power. Departing from this binary opposition, this study views TCM as an autonomous space that had never been subjugated by the colonial power which opted for minimal interventionist approach toward TCM. By adopting diachronic and synchronic perspectives on Hong Kong's unique environment shaped by its colonial history and the geopolitics of the Cold War in East Asia, particularly its relationships with "China," this research seeks to reassess the role and status of TCM in post-World War II Hong Kong. In Hong Kong, along with other countries in East Asia, traditional medicine has ceded its position as mainstream medicine to Western medicine. Faced with the crisis of "extinction," Chinese medical professionals, including medical practitioners and merchant groups, persistently sought solidarity and "self-renewal." In the 1950s and 1960s, the colonial authorities heavily relied on private entities, including charity hospitals and clinics; furthermore, there was a lack of provision of public healthcare and official prevention measures against the epidemic influenza. As such, it is not surprising that the Chinese utilized TCM, along with Western medicine, to contain the epidemics which brought about an explosive surge in the number of patients from novel influenza viruses. TCM was significantly consumed during these explosive outbreaks of influenza in 1957 and 1968. In making this argument, this paper firstly provides an overview of the associations of Chinese medical practitioners and merchants who were crucial to the development of TCM in Hong Kong. Secondly, it analyzes one level of active provision and consumption of Chinese medicine during the two flu epidemics, focusing on the medical practices of TCM practitioners in the 1957 epidemic. While recognizing the etiologic agent or agents of the disease as influenza viruses, the group of Chinese medical practitioners of the Chinese Medical Society in Hong Kong adopted the basic principles of traditional medicine regarding influenza, such as Shanghanlun and Wenbingxue, to distinguish the disease status among patients and prescribe medicine according to correct diagnoses, which were effective. Thirdly, this paper examines the level of folk culture among the people, who utilized famous prescriptions of Chinese herbal medicine and alimentotherapy, in addition to Chinese patent medicines imported from mainland China. In the context of regional commercial network, this section also demonstrates how Hong Kong served as a sole exporting port of medicinal materials (e.g., Chinese herbs) and Chinese patent medicines from the People's Republic of China to capitalist markets, including Hong Kong, under the socialist planned or controlled economy in the 1950s and 1960s. It was not only the efficacy of TCM in restoring immunity and alleviating symptoms of the human body, but also the voluntary efforts of these Chinese medical practitioners who sought to defend national medicine "Guoyi," positioning it as complementary and alternative medicine to scientific medicine. Additionally, merchants who imported and distributed Chinese medicinal materials and national "Guochan" Chinese patent medicine played a crucial role, as did the people who utilized Chinese medicine, all of which contributed to making TCM thrive in colonial Hong Kong.

[The Japanese emperors' view of epidemic and medical relief in the 8th-10th centuries].

At the end of the 7th century, Chinese medicine was widely spread in the upper class of Japanese society, and Japanese emperors developed a medical based view on epidemics. At the beginning of the 8th century, emperors determined to reform by imitated the Tang to build a state ruled by law.They determine the way of TCM to relieve the epidemic in the form of legislation, and used medical measures in outbreaks on many occasions.However, with the spread of smallpox and other epidemics during the Tenpei year, Japan's backward medical level and poor medical resources were unable to cope with the epidemic, and the emperors turned to the epidemic as calamity. From the late 8th century to the end of 10th century, Japanese emperors responded with Buddhist, Shinto, and Confucian measures. Medical relief gradually became obsolete at the national level. But at the individual level of the emperors, they attached great importance to the use of Chinese medicine for epidemic prevention and treatment, in the mid to late 9th century, medical prevention measures were established in the court through legal means.

The Autumn Ghost-The Danish Polio Epidemic of 1952 and the Birth of Intensive Care Medicine.

This Arts and Medicine feature reviews The Autumn Ghost, an historical retelling of the 1952 polio epidemic in Copenhagen, Denmark, which catalyzed developments in anesthesia and respiratory support procedures that are still in use today.

Las epidemias de viruela y la introducción de la vacuna en el Virreinato del Río de la Plata / Smallpox epidemics and vaccine introduction in the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata

La viruela fue una de las enfermedades epidémicas más temidas desde la antigüedad debido a su alta mortalidad y a las secuelas que dejaba en aquellos que lograban sobrevivir. En el presente trabajo se abordará el ingreso de esta enfermedad en nuestro continente, así como su manifestación a través de epidemias, brotes y focos endémicos. Al mismo tiempo se verá qué reacciones provocó dentro del ámbito médico durante los años del Virreinato del Río de la Plata. Se analizarán los problemas que surgieron con el uso de la vacuna importada, así como el hallazgo de nuestra vacuna local, finalizando con los comienzos de la organización de los servicios de vacunación obligatoria. (AU)

Smallpox was one of the most feared epidemic diseases since ancient times due to its high mortality and the sequelae caused in those that managed to survive. In the present work, the introduction of this disease into our continent will be addressed as well as its manifestation through epidemics, outbreaks, and endemic foci. At the same time, the reactions this disease caused inside the medical field during the years of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata will be observed. The problems that arose from the usage of the imported vaccine and the discovery of our local vaccine will be analyzed, and it will finish with the beginnings of the organization of the mandatory vaccination services. (AU)

Las epidemias de cólera en Argentina. Breve reseña histórica / The cholera epidemics in Argentina. Brief historical review

El cólera es una toxoinfección alimentaria ocasionada por la ingesta de agua y alimentos contaminados por el Vibrio cholerae. Es una de las enfermedades más antiguas de la humanidad y las primeras descripciones corresponden a Hipócrates. La primera epidemia documentada, sucedió en la India en 1817 y se extendió a Turquía y a los países árabes. En nuestro país, el primer brote ocurrió en 1856 en la ciudad de Bahía Blanca, asociada a la llegada de navíos con enfermos y a las deficientes condiciones sanitarias de la ciudad. Los sucesivos brotes se acompañaron de una alta mortalidad, a tal punto que el Dr. José María Penna señaló que costó más vidas a la nación que la guerra con Paraguay. En el presente artículo se analizan los sucesivos brotes de cólera en nuestro país

Cholera is a food poisoning caused by the ingestion of food and water contaminated by Vibrio cholerae. It is one of the oldest diseases of humanity and the first descriptions correspond to Hippocrates. The first documented epidemic occurred in India in 1817 and spread to Turkey and the Arab countries. In our country, the first outbreak occurred in 1856 in the city of Bahía Blanca, associated with the arrival of ships with patients and poor sanitary conditions in the city. The successive outbreaks were accompanied by high mortality, to the point that Dr. José María Penna pointed out that it cost the nation more lives than the war with Paraguay. This article analyzes the successive outbreaks of cholera in our country

Histories of Medieval Plague in Renaissance Italy.

During the sixteenth century, Italian scholars revised their conception of the field of history so that its purposes went beyond providing political and morally edifying narratives. These scholars contended that history must also account for culture and nature in an encyclopedic fashion. In the same years, numerous newly available texts from antiquity, the Byzantine empire, and the Middle Ages provided insight into the character of earlier outbreaks of plague. Italian physicians, embracing new visions of the field of history, the culture of humanism, and an inductivist epistemology, used these texts to argue that there were continuities among ancient, medieval, and Renaissance epidemics. They catalogued plague and formed historical categories based on severity and perceived origins, leading to the rejection of the conclusions of fourteenth-century western Europeans who viewed the plague of 1347-1353 as unprecedented. These erudite physicians saw medieval plague to be one example of the extreme epidemics that have regularly occurred throughout history.

Cuando el presente puede ayudar a refinar las interpretaciones del pasado: covid-19 en tiempo real y la historiografía de las epidemias / When the present can help refine interpretations of the past: covid-19 in real time and the historiography of epidemics

Resumen Estas notas abordan la proliferación de discursos con enfoques improvisados, desinformados, apocalípticos y voluntaristas. Enfatizan cuestiones como la ignorancia sobre la historia de las epidemias, y también la incapacidad para lidiar con las incertidumbres que reinan durante las pandemias, así como los anuncios que este extraordinario evento sanitario produciría un profundo parteaguas en todos los órdenes de la vida y en todos los rincones del mundo. Finalmente, estas notas buscan señalar cómo el presente puede iluminar el estudio del pasado - o, de modo más personal, lo que creo haber aprendido como historiador en los tiempos de la pandemia de la covid-19.

Abstract These notes address the proliferation of discourses with improvised, uninformed, apocalyptic and voluntarist approaches. They emphasize issues such as the widespread ignorance about the history of epidemics, and the inability to deal with the uncertainties that reign during pandemic times, as well as the announcements that this extraordinary health/sanitary event would produce a profound watershed in all walks of life and in all corners of the world. Finally, these notes seek to point out how the present can illuminate the study of the past - or, more personally, what I think I have learned as a historian in the times of the covid-19 pandemic.

Ancient DNA reveals Black Death source.

Graves in Kyrgyzstan hold early victims of plague that swept medieval Europe.

Vigilância epidemiológica: breve histórico e a experiência dos Estados Unidos e do estado de São Paulo / Inteligencia epidemiológica: breve histórico y la experiencia de los Estados Unidos y del estado de São Paulo, en Brasil / Epidemiological surveillance: a brief history and the experiences of the United States and the state of São Paulo

Objetivo: O objetivo desta revisão narrativa foi elencar alguns aspectos históricos da vigilância epidemiológica, modelo tecnológico de intervenção inicialmente desenhado para auxiliar no controle das doenças transmissíveis, no último século. Métodos: Narrativa construída a partir de textos selecionados, para registrar o desenvolvimento da vigilância epidemiológica nos Estados Unidos e no estado de São Paulo, Brasil. Resultados: São apresentadas as origens de algumas das ações componentes do repertório da vigilância epidemiológica, e uma breve história da construção do originalmente nomeado Center for Disease Control, agência dos Estados Unidos exemplar na forma como se faz vigilância em praticamente todo o mundo. Do mesmo modo, são delineados os caminhos que levaram à organização do sistema de vigilância no estado de São Paulo, traçando alguns paralelos com o sistema brasileiro. Conclusão: A narrativa é concluída com uma diferenciação conceitual entre vigilância epidemiológica, monitoramento e vigilância em saúde.

Objetivo: El objetivo de esta revisión narrativa es enumerar algunos aspectos históricos de la vigilancia epidemiológica modelo tecnológico de intervención diseñado para apoyar en el control de las enfermedades transmisibles en el último siglo. Métodos: Narrativa construida a partir de textos seleccionados y la experiencia del autor, para registrar el desarrollo dsen en los Estados Unidos y en el estado de São Paulo, Brasil. Resultados: Se presentan los orígenes de algunas de las acciones que componen el repertorio de la vigilancia epidemiológica, así como una breve historia de la construcción del Center for Disease Control, una agencia de Estados Unidos que es ejemplar por la forma en que realiza la vigilancia en, prácticamente, todo el mundo. Asimismo, se delinean los caminos que llevaron a la organización del sistema de vigilancia en el estado de São Paulo, trazando algunos paralelos con el sistema brasileño. Conclusión: Finalmente, concluye con la diferenciación entre vigilancia epidemiológica, monitoreo y vigilancia en salud.

Objective: The objective of this narrative review was to list some historical aspects of epidemiological surveillance, a technological intervention model initially designed to help control communicable diseases in the last century. Methods: This narrative was built based on texts selected to record the development of epidemiological surveillance in the United States and in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Results: The origins of some of the actions that constitute epidemiological surveillance activities are presented, as well as a brief history of the establishment of the originally named Center for Disease Control, a United States agency that is held up as an example in relation to the way surveillance has been performed, practically all over the world. Likewise, we outline the paths that led to the establishment of the surveillance system in the state of São Paulo, drawing some parallels with the Brazilian system. Conclusion: The narrative concludes with a conceptual differentiation between epidemiological surveillance, monitoring and health surveillance.

Las enfermedades emergentes y reemergentes: una mirada desde la obra del Dr. Juan Guiteras Gener / Emerging and re-emerging diseases: a look from the work of Dr. Juan Guiteras Gener

RESUMEN Se describen los principales aspectos de la labor del Dr. Juan Guiteras con relación a la sanidad cubana y a los avances de la ciencia de su época. Se presenta la situación higiénico-epidemiológica y las principales actividades de control realizadas bajo su dirección. Se siguió el método histórico-lógico, apoyado en la técnica de la revisión documental. En documentos del Archivo Histórico Provincial José Jacinto Milanés, y en artículos científicos del período, se revisaron informaciones y estadísticas de las principales epidemias ocurridas en Cuba entre 1900 y 1925: viruela, paludismo, fiebre amarilla, poliomielitis, peste bubónica, la gripe de 1918-1919 y la tuberculosis. Estas enfermedades se caracterizaron por una alta morbilidad y mortalidad. La respuesta institucional ante las epidemias fue acertada y oportuna, a partir de los recursos y avances científicos con los que contaban: permitió erradicar la fiebre amarilla (1908), la peste bubónica (1915), la viruela (1923), y disminuir la morbilidad y mortalidad de la gripe, la tuberculosis, la fiebre tifoidea, la poliomielitis y el paludismo. El Dr. Guiteras tuvo una participación decisiva en el control de las epidemias y en la sanidad de la Isla, desde sus altos cargos en el ramo (AU).

ABSTRACT The main aspects of Juan Guiteras Gener's work in relation to Cuban health care and to the scientific advances of his times are described. The hygienic-epidemiological situation of those times and the main control activities carried out under his direction are presented. The historical-logical method was followed, based on documental review technique. Information and statistics of the main epidemics that occurred in Cuba in the period 1900-1925: smallpox, malaria, yellow fever, poliomyelitis, bubonic plague, 1918-1919 influenza, and tuberculosis were reviewed in documents of the Archivo Histórico Provincial José Jacinto Milanés[Provincial Historic Archive Jose Jacinto Milanes] and in scientific articles of the period. Those diseases were characterized by a high morbidity and mortality. The institutional answer toward epidemics was successful and timely, based on the resources and scientific advances then had: it allowed to eradicate yellow fever (1908), bubonic plague (1915), smallpox (1923) and decrease the morbidity and mortality of influenza, tuberculosis, typhoid fever, poliomyelitis and malaria. Doctor Guiteras made a decisive contribution in the control of epidemics and health in the Island, due to his high responsibilities in the field (AU).

Las epidemias en La Pampa (Argentina), en perspectiva histórica* / The epidemics in La Pampa (Argentina), from a historical perspective

Resumen Este artículo describe el inicio de las preocupaciones sanitarias vinculadas a las epidemias ocurridas durante el siglo XX en La Pampa, provincia argentina. Las epidemias, como las de la viruela, fueron un estímulo para estas políticas que frecuentemente tuvieron origen en Buenos Aires, la capital del país. El contagio de muchas epidemias dependía de carencias de infraestructura: agua, desagüe y desecho adecuado de basuras, de la ausencia de un número suficiente de trabajadores de salud, de la presencia de vectores transmisores de enfermedades como los mosquitos y, en última instancia, de la pobreza. La experiencia histórica descrita en este texto resalta la importancia de analizar el impacto del SARS-CoV-2 más allá de las grandes ciudades.

Abstract This article describes the emergence of health concerns relating to the epidemics that occurred during the twentieth century in La Pampa, a province in Argentina. Epidemics such as smallpox drove such policies, which frequently originated in Buenos Aires, the country's capital. The spread of many epidemics was due to shortages: water, sewage and adequate refuse disposal, an insufficient number of health care workers, the presence of disease transmission vectors such as mosquitos, and, ultimately, poverty. The historical experience described in this text highlights the importance of analyzing the impact of SARS-CoV-2 beyond the big cities.

[The epidemics in La Pampa (Argentina), from a historical perspective]. / Las epidemias en La Pampa (Argentina), en perspectiva histórica.

This article describes the emergence of health concerns relating to the epidemics that occurred during the twentieth century in La Pampa, a province in Argentina. Epidemics such as smallpox drove such policies, which frequently originated in Buenos Aires, the country's capital. The spread of many epidemics was due to shortages: water, sewage and adequate refuse disposal, an insufficient number of health care workers, the presence of disease transmission vectors such as mosquitos, and, ultimately, poverty. The historical experience described in this text highlights the importance of analyzing the impact of SARS-CoV-2 beyond the big cities.

Este artículo describe el inicio de las preocupaciones sanitarias vinculadas a las epidemias ocurridas durante el siglo XX en La Pampa, provincia argentina. Las epidemias, como las de la viruela, fueron un estímulo para estas políticas que frecuentemente tuvieron origen en Buenos Aires, la capital del país. El contagio de muchas epidemias dependía de carencias de infraestructura: agua, desagüe y desecho adecuado de basuras, de la ausencia de un número suficiente de trabajadores de salud, de la presencia de vectores transmisores de enfermedades como los mosquitos y, en última instancia, de la pobreza. La experiencia histórica descrita en este texto resalta la importancia de analizar el impacto del SARS-CoV-2 más allá de las grandes ciudades.

Historic and bioarchaeological evidence supports late onset of post-Columbian epidemics in Native California.

Catastrophic decline of Indigenous populations in the Americas following European contact is one of the most severe demographic events in the history of humanity, but uncertainty persists about the timing and scale of the collapse, which has implications for not only Indigenous history but also the understanding of historical ecology. A long-standing hypothesis that a continent-wide pandemic broke out immediately upon the arrival of Spanish seafarers has been challenged in recent years by a model of regional epidemics erupting asynchronously, causing different rates of population decline in different areas. Some researchers have suggested that, in California, significant depopulation occurred during the first two centuries of the post-Columbus era, which led to a "rebound" in native flora and fauna by the time of sustained European contact after 1769. Here, we combine a comprehensive prehistoric osteological dataset (n = 10,256 individuals) with historic mission mortuary records (n = 23,459 individuals) that together span from 3050 cal BC to AD 1870 to systematically evaluate changes in mortality over time by constructing life tables and conducting survival analysis of age-at-death records. Results show that a dramatic shift in the shape of mortality risk consistent with a plague-like population structure began only after sustained contact with European invaders, when permanent Spanish settlements and missions were established ca. AD 1770. These declines reflect the syndemic effects of newly introduced diseases and the severe cultural disruption of Indigenous lifeways by the Spanish colonial system.

Epi InfoTM en los sistemas de información en salud para COVID-19 / Epi InfoTM in Health Information Systems for COVID-19

La COVID-19 ha desatado una emergencia internacional en Salud Pública al afectar millones de personas, provocar muertes, y causar una crisis humanitaria nunca antes vista. Esto ha saturado los sistemas de información en salud de los países afectados, donde resultan de utilidad las herramientas informáticas para el manejo de un gran número de casos, al menor costo económico posible. En este contexto resalta el paquete de programas epidemiológicos Epi InfoTM, que permite crear formularios electrónicos para la recolección de datos. La presente investigación tiene como objetivo describir las ventajas y facilidades de implementar Epi InfoTM para los casos de COVID-19. Con módulos para analizar la información mediante cálculos y representaciones de medidas epidemiológicas, además de crear mapas de casos sospechosos o confirmados, Epi InfoTM cuenta también con complementos para dispositivos móviles y la web; todos con experiencias probadas en situaciones de epidemias como la del Ébola, VIH y el MERS. Por lo que Epi InfoTM es una aplicación robusta y libre de costo muy útil para su implementación en los sistemas de información en salud para el manejo adecuado de casos de COVID-19(AU)

COVID-19 has unleashed an international Public Health emergency by affecting millions of people, causing deaths, and a humanitarian crisis never seen before. This has saturated the health information systems of the affected countries, where computer tools are useful for managing a large number of cases, at the lowest possible economic cost. In this context, the Epi InfoTM package of epidemiological programs which allows creating electronic forms for data collections, stands out in addition with modules to analyze the information through calculations and representations of epidemiological measures. It also allows creating maps of suspected or confirmed cases and has applications for mobile devices and web; all with proven experiences in epidemic situations such as Ebola, HIV, and the previous outbreaks of Coronavirus. Therefore, Epi InfoTM is a robust and free of cost application, very useful for its implementation in health information systems for the adequate management of COVID-19 cases(AU)

Changes in characteristics and case-severity in patients hospitalised with influenza A (H1N1) pdm09 infection between two epidemic waves-England, 2009-2010.

BACKGROUND: During 2009-2010, pandemic influenza A (H1N1) pdm09 virus (pH1N1) infections in England occurred in two epidemic waves. Reasons for a reported increase in case-severity during the second wave are unclear. METHODS: We analysed hospital-based surveillance for patients with pH1N1 infections in England during 2009-2010 and linked national data sets to estimate ethnicity, socio-economic status and death within 28 days of admission. We used multivariable logistic regression to assess whether changes in demographic, clinical and management characteristics of patients could explain an increase in ICU admission or death, and accounted for missing values using multiple imputation. RESULTS: During the first wave, 54/960 (6%) hospitalised patients required intensive care and 21/960 (2%) died; during the second wave 143/1420 (10%) required intensive care and 55/1420 (4%) died. In a multivariable model, during the second wave patients were less likely to be from an ethnic minority (OR 0.33, 95% CI 0.26-0.42), have an elevated deprivation score (OR 0.75, 95% CI 0.68-0.83), have known comorbidity (OR 0.78, 95% CI 0.63-0.97) or receive antiviral therapy ≤2 days before onset (OR 0.72, 95% CI 0.56-0.92). Increased case-severity during the second wave was not explained by changes in demographic, clinical or management characteristics. CONCLUSIONS: Monitoring changes in patient characteristics could help target interventions during multiple waves of COVID-19 or a future influenza pandemic. To understand and respond to changes in case-severity, surveillance is needed that includes additional factors such as admission thresholds and seasonal coinfections.

Anti-Epidemic Emergency Regimes under Polish Law in Comparative, Historical and Jurisprudential Perspective.

The SARS-CoV-2 crisis of 2020 triggered a number of unprecedented reactions of European states, in particular in the form of either constitutional emergency measures or statutory anti-epidemic emergency measures. Poland chose to deal with the crisis by delegating powers to the executive by ordinary legislative means and declared a nationwide state of epidemic emergency on 13 March 2020 and a week later a state of epidemic on the basis of the Act of 5 December 2008 on preventing and combating infections and infectious diseases. For a century, Poland has been dealing with epidemics by delegating powers to the executive by ordinary legislative means. Anti-epidemic emergency measures were developed under the relevant acts of 1919, 1935, 1963, 2001, 2008 and now form an autonomous normative model authorised directly by Article 68 (4) of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland of 2 April 1997. The Constitution of 2 April 1997 authorises also extraordinary measures in situations of particular danger, "if ordinary constitutional measures are inadequate". This article analyses anti-epidemic emergency regimes under Polish law in a comparative, historical and jurisprudential perspective.