This chapter explores the origins of measles, its connection to other viruses, and its evolution from either canine distemper or rinderpest. It discusses the challenges of identifying the disease accurately throughout history, historical treatments recommended by figures like Alrazi, and the attempts at developing a vaccine by Francis Holm. The chapter also delves into the contagious nature of measles through blood, dispelling prior theories of its cause.
Though measles was declared eliminated in the U.S. decades ago, outbreaks do still happen here, and in other places it’s much more common. Before vaccines were widely available, it killed an estimated 2.6 million people worldwide each year.
Research:
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- Panum, Peter Ludwig. “Observations made during the epidemic of measles on the Faroe Islands in the year 1846.” Gerstein - University of Toronto. https://archive.org/details/observationsmade00panuuoft
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