Abstract
THE Ministry of Health has issued a revised edition of the Memorandum on Influenza, first published in 1919 and revised in 1927 (Memo. H.M. Stationery Office. 2d. net). It is pointed out that since the great and fatal pandemic in 1918–19, influenza epidemics in England and Wales have shown a decided preference for the first quarter of the year. The disease is caused by a filterable virus, and the incubation period is about 48 hours. Infection is conveyed from the sick to the healthy by the secretions of the respiratory surfaces. Beyond adequate ventilation, with perhaps gargling with an antiseptic solution after close contact with infection, little can be done for personal protection. At the first feeling of illness, the patient should go to bed in a room by himself, keep warm, and seek medical treatment.
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Memorandum on Influenza. Nature 144, 1008 (1939). https://doi.org/10.1038/1441008c0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/1441008c0