Historie: Pest og epidemiske sygdomme

I begyndelsen af 2019 følte den 57-årige rejehandler Wei Guixian i Wuhan sig småsløj. Hun opsøgte en læge for at få hjælp til at dulme symptomerne og vendte derpå tilbage til sin stadeplads på dyremarkedet. Tre måneder senere var smitten ude af kontrol og spredt i hele verden.For langt de fleste af den moderne verdens indbyggere var det første gang, de så effekten af en verdensomspændende epidemi med den angst og destruktion, som følger i slipstrømmen. I et historiskperspektiv var den til gengæld forventelig. Frygten for epidemierne er ældgammel, og engang troede man, at de høstede deres ofre fra ryggen af en gustengul hest. Det er da også helt uden sammenligning sygdomme og ikke krige, der udgør verdenshistoriens største dræber. Adskillige gange har epidemier ændret historiens gang og været afgørende for, om imperier bestod eller bukkede under, ligesom de har givet nye muligheder for de overlevende.Denne bog fortæller hele historien, fra de første epidemier blandt de tidligste stenalderbønder, til hele verdens befolkning blev ramt af COVID-19.

En efterårsdag 1349. I Jammerbugten på den jyske vestkyst ligger et strandet skib og hugger i brændingen. Besætningen er død, men en uhyggelig passager er klar til at gå i land: Pesten – klar til at galoppere hen over de værgeløse menneskemasser.Den Sorte Død får den gamle verden til at krakelere. En tredjedel af alle mennesker dør, og i de næste 350 år hjemsøger forskellige epidemier kontinentet. Hverken bøn, urter eller lægekunst hjælper, så der er frit slag for vilde teorier. Det er Guds straf! Det er jøderne! Stjernerne og planeterne! Nej, det er heksekunst – eller giftige dunster fra jorden!Den blege rytter fortæller om et Europa i opløsning. Men de store epidemier skaber også nybrud. De sætter skub i den teknologiske udvikling, udløser sociale omvæltninger og baner vej for renæssancen, reformationen og det moderne samfund, vi nu lever i.

Læs historien om de mange gale medicinske påfund, der siden oldtiden har kostet utallige mennesker livet – men som også har ført til geniale gennembrud, der har reddet millioner af menneskeliv. Når vores tipoldeforældre tilkaldte lægen, var det med livet som indsats. Lægen troede fuldt og fast på sine evner. Patienten troede, at lægen vidste, hvad han gjorde. Begge tog fejl. Behandlingen byggede på teorier, som var 2000 år gamle. På overtro og uvidenhed. Reelt kunne lægen intet stille op mod sygdomme og epidemier. Medicin var i heldigste fald uden virkning, og den var i de fleste tilfælde giftig med ingredienser som kviksølv, opium og andre mystiske ingredienser.Man tappede blod af patienter med blodmangel. Børn fik hostesaft med dødelige morfinmængder. Kirurger udførte store operationer uden bedøvelse og rodede i såret med snavsede fingre. Patienterne døde af lægers uvidenhed og konservatisme.Heldigvis var der læger, som rejste tvivl om de gamle dogmer og gik deres egne, eksperimenterende veje. I dag virker mange af deres ideer latterlige og groteske, og ofte gik forsøgene helt galt. Indsatsen var livet, og mange betalte den højeste pris. Men de gennembrud, der fulgte, har reddet millioner af liv og har på få generationer ført til vores moderne, effektive medicin.

En måned før coronaen ramte, mistede Carsten Jensen sin stedsøn, som kun blev 25 år. Carsten forelæste på et universitet i Los Angeles, hvor han var engageret i en tæt dialog med sine unge studerende om deres håb og drømme for fremtiden. Tilbage i selvisolation i et nedlukket Danmark besluttede han sig for at dokumentere pandemien. Hvad tænkte vi, imens den stod på? Hvad er vores forventninger, når den slutter?Øvelser i afsked er en bog om afsked, både den personlige og den globale, hvor vi alle er tvunget ud i en helt ny, udsat position. Sorg er et ukendt land, og det er en pandemi også. Ensomhed, eftertanke og en følelse af tab har de til fælles. Øvelser i afsked er også en bog om livsperspektiver, der lukker sig, mens andre åbner, og en historisk situation, der kræver nye spørgsmål og svar.

Man siger, at menneskeheden rammes af en stor pandemi hvert hundrede år. Den seneste er Coronapandemien i 2020. Endnu oftere rammes vi af epidemier. For hver gang lærer vi noget nyt, ikke bare om immunitet og vacciner, men også om os selv som individer og samfund.I 1952-1953 oplevede Danmark en omfattende polioepidemi, der ramte 7.268 mennesker. Størstedelen var børn, mere end 300 døde,mens over 2.500 fik varige mén. Midt i epidemiens panik skete der et mirakel, som endte med at redde mange liv.Miraklet på Blegdammen beretter om et afgørende kapitel i dansk historie, først og fremmest fortalt af patienterne og deres pårørende. Vi møder moren, som måtte se magtesløs til, mens hendes lille dreng svævede mellem liv og død, og den lille pige, der måtte igennem mangeeksperimentelle operationer, før hendes liv blev reddet, og hendesførlighed forbedret. Vi møder de medicinstuderende, der time eftertime håndventilerede de lammede børn og sørgede for, at de fik luft i lungerne. Vi møder desuden de læger, der tog det afgørende springmod en helt ny metode, som reddede børnenes liv.Miraklet på Blegdammen er både en fortælling om, hvor komplekstog kaotisk det kan være at redde liv under en epidemi og et vidnesbyrdfra patienterne selv. Deres liv blev reddet, men de oplever – her næsten 70 år senere – senfølger i form af fornyede smerter og lammelser.Henriette Bendix og Preben Lund er journalister og har begge skrevet flere bøger.

DEN SORTE DØD - NEDSLAG I PESTENS HISTORIE er en række spændende fortællinger om pesten, der samtidig kan ses som et spejl på vores egen skrøbelighed over for nutidens livstruende pandemier. Den sorte død er et tilbagevendende mareridt, der bølger frem og tilbage gennem Europa i 400 år. Skrækslagne borgere beder for deres liv, mens præster og magtesløse læger flygter ud af byerne. Videnskaben er i syv sind: Er pesten Guds straf over de syndige mennesker eller er den udløst af planeternes uheldige stilling? Bogen fortæller om pestens vej til Danmark, sygdommens udvikling og lægernes afmagt. Tidsperioden spænder fra midten af 1300-tallet til 1711, hvor pesten lagde gaderne i Helsingør og København øde, inden den forsvandt fra Danmark og Europa.Jette Varmer fortæller om pesten, som hun forestiller sig, at den jævne befolkning oplevede den; som en skånselsløs dræber, men også som en ny virkelighed, der baner vejen for, at de overlevende kan gå nye veje.

A BBC RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEKA TIMES SCIENCE BOOK OF THE YEARA SUNDAY TIMES SCIENCE BOOK OF THE YEAR'Powerfully argued... Fascinating and pacy' Sunday Times, Book of the Week'Superbly written... sure to please readers of Yuval Noah Harari or Rutger Bregman' The Times'Full of amazing facts' Observer'The book shines when it brings cutting-edge science to bear' Financial Times'A dizzying range of material' The Economist'A humbling story for humankind' SpectatorChallenges some of the greatest cliches about colonialism... A revelation' SATHNAM SANGHERA'Thrilling and eye-opening' LEWIS DARTNELL'Science and history at its best' MARK HONIGSBAUM'Unpicks everything we thought we knew... Mind blowing' CAL FLYNIn this revelatory book, Dr Jonathan Kennedy argues that germs have shaped humanity at every stage, from the first success of Homo sapiens over the equally intelligent Neanderthals to the fall of Rome and the rise of Islam.How did an Indonesian volcano help cause the Black Death, setting Europe on the road to capitalism? How could 168 men extract the largest ransom in history from an opposing army of eighty thousand? And why did the Industrial Revolution lead to the birth of the modern welfare state?The latest science reveals that infectious diseases are not just something that happens to us, but a fundamental part of who we are. Indeed, the only reason humans don't lay eggs is that a virus long ago inserted itself into our DNA, and there are as many bacteria in your body as there are human cells. We have been thinking about the survival of the fittest all wrong: evolution is not simply about human strength and intelligence, but about how we live and thrive in a world dominated by microbes.By exploring the startling intimacy of our relationship with infectious diseases, Kennedy shows how they have been responsible for some of the seismic revolutions of the past 50,000 years. Provocative and brimming with insight, Pathogenesis transforms our understanding of the human story, revealing how the crisis of a pandemic can offer vital opportunities for change.

I 2018 var det 100 år siden, at verden blev ramt af den spanske syge – en influenzaepidemi, der dræbte over 50 millioner mennesker på verdensplan. I Danmark døde op mod 18.000 overvejende yngre mennesker i løbet af de to år epidemien hærgede.Det var den største medicinske katastrofe herhjemme I flere århundreder, og en af de største udfordringer det danske sundhedsvæsen nogensinde har stået overfor.Forfatteren lægger særlig vægt på at fremstille den frygt og angst, der herskede i befolkningen, og den selvopofrende indsats, som tusinder af danskere frivilligt ydede – ofte med risiko for deres eget liv – for at hjælpe ofrene.Der er tale om en overset del af danmarkshistorien, der rummer sin egen dramatik, men som også har relevans for os i dag på grund af formodningen om, at der på et tidspunkt vil komme en influenzaepidemi med samme høje dødelighed ogtendens til at ramme yngre voksne. Der har allerede været flere lignende, men dog mildere pandemier. Viden om, hvordan smitsomme sygdomme udbreder sig i befolkningerne – epidemiologien – er vigtig for bekæmpelsen af dem. Blandt andet derfor er historien om den spanske syge højst interessant. Der er hidtil ikke udgivet større værker om epidemiens danske forløb. Det vil denne bog råde bod på. Dens kilder er dels de officielle (pressen, Sundhedsstyrelsen, embedslægerne), dels 46 beretninger om epidemien fra danske øjenvidner, forfattet i perioden 1951 til 1972. Med erindringerne skildres epidemien af ofre, pårørende, læger, sygeplejersker og andre, der tog sigaf de syge. Det hele formidlet i en form, der er tilgængelig og interessant for alle med interesse for emnet.

A pacy, real-life page-turner by Reuters journalist on the global 100-days mission to identify and catch the next virus outbreak, codenamed DISEASE X, before it spreads worldwide.

"A perfectly pitched medical mystery that will captivate you from page one."—Wes Ely, MD, MPH, author of Every Deep-Drawn Breath, winner of the 2022 Christopher Award for Literature.A suspenseful, authoritative account of how the battle against a mid-century polio epidemic sparked a revolution in medical care.Americans knew polio as the "summer plague." In countries further North, however, the virus arrived later in the year, slipping into the homes of healthy children as the summer waned and the equinox approached. It was described by one writer as "the autumn ghost."Intensive care units and mechanical ventilation are the crucial foundation of modern medical care: without them, the appalling death toll of the COVID-19 pandemic would be even higher. In The Autumn Ghost, Dr. Hannah Wunsch traces the origins of these two innovations back to a polio epidemic in the autumn of 1952. Drawing together compelling testimony from doctors, nurses, medical students, and patients, Wunsch relates a gripping tale of an epidemic that changed the world.In vivid, captivating chapters, Wunsch tells the dramatic true story of how insiders and iconoclasts came together in one overwhelmed hospital in Copenhagen to save the lives of many polio patients dying of respiratory failure. Their radical advances in care marked a turning point in the treatment of patients around the world—from the rise of life support and the creation of intensive care units to the evolution of rehabilitation medicine.Moving and informative, The Autumn Ghost will leave readers in awe of the courage of those who battled the polio epidemic, and grateful for the modern medical care they pioneered.

Poetry, Jim Nisbet, seminal figure in West Coast Noir Renaissance, informed by classical tradition and immediate circumstances of worldwide pandemic, a poetic diary of uncommon artistic, historic, and metaphysical resonance.

The dying wish of Rose's father is that she and her brother survive the plague rampaging through London in 1665. Armed with the last creation their father made in his apothecary, Rose and Lem hope to protect themselves against the sickness, but as word about the special oil blend spreads, they must also protect themselves against thieves.

From the author of the modern business classic The Smartest Guys in the Room comes a damning indictment of late-stage capitalism-and the leaders that were brutally unprepared for a global pandemic.In 2020, the coronavirus pandemic made it painfully clear that governments across the world could not adequately protect their citizens. Millions of people suffered and died in just two years, while administrations around the globe blundered; prize-winning economists overlooked devastating trade-offs from the collapse of trade; and elites escaped to isolated retreats, unaffected by - and worse, even profiting from - the worst healthcare crisis to hit humanity in decades.In this page-turning economic, political and financial history, veteran journalists Bethany McClean and Joseph Nocera analyse the American response to the pandemic as a case study, to offer fresh and provocative answers. With laser-sharp reporting and deep sourcing, they investigate what really happened when governments ran out of PPE due to snarled supply chains; and the shock to the financial system when the world's biggest economies stumbled. They zero in on the effectiveness of wildly polarised approaches across states, and they trace why thousands died in hollowed-out hospital systems and nursing homes run by private equity firms, all in the name of "maximising shareholder value".The Big Fail is an expansive, gripping narrative account on what the pandemic did to one economy, and how it forced us to question the fundamental principles of our society

From the bestselling, Booker-shortlisted writer of Italian Ways and Europa, a classic novel about a man's emotional reckoning in a changed world far from homeFrank's reclusive existence in a leafy part of London is shattered when he is summoned to Milan for the funeral of an old friend. Preoccupied by this sudden intrusion of his past, he flies, oblivious, into the epicentre of a crisis he has barely registered on the news.It is spring, his luxury hotel offers every imaginable comfort; perhaps he will be able to weather the situation and return home unscathed? What Frank doesn't know is that he's about to make a discovery that will change his heart and his mind.The arresting new novel from Booker Prize-shortlisted Tim Parks, Hotel Milano is a universal story from a unique moment in recent history: a book about the kindness of strangers, and about a complicated man who, faced with the possibility of saving a life, must also take stock of his own.Praise for In Extremis:'Parks's prose brings us closer to the pressures and rhythms of a lived life than the work of any other contemporary writer I can think of'Mike McCormack, New Statesman Books of the Year'Head and shoulders above so many of the books turned out by similar writers... A wonderfully written novel'Kirsty Gunn, Guardian'Tim Parks is a hugely talented writer'Sunday Times

A Journal of the Plague Year is an account of one man's experiences when the bubonic plague struck London in 1665. It is presented as an eyewitness account of the events at the time, identifying specific houses in which events took place.

The Decameron is a collection of 100 tales told by ten young people sheltering in a secluded villa outside Florence to escape the Black Death. To pass the evenings, each member of the party tells a story each night.

The astonishing true story of how Catherine the Great joined forces with a Quaker doctor from Essex to spearhead one of the first global public health campaigns.A TIMES BEST BOOK OF 2022 SO FAR Shortlisted for the Pushkin House Book Prize 2022 'Sparkling history…with a fairytale atmosphere of sleigh rides, royal palaces and heroic risk-taking' The Times A killer virus…an all-powerful Empress…an encounter cloaked in secrecy…the astonishing true story. Within living memory, smallpox was a dreaded disease. Over human history it has killed untold millions. Back in the eighteenth century, as epidemics swept Europe, the first rumours emerged of an effective treatment: a mysterious method called inoculation. But a key problem remained: convincing people to accept the preventative remedy, the forerunner of vaccination. Arguments raged over risks and benefits, and public resistance ran high. As smallpox ravaged her empire and threatened her court, Catherine the Great took the momentous decision to summon the Quaker physician Thomas Dimsdale to St Petersburg to carry out a secret mission that would transform both their lives. Lucy Ward expertly unveils the extraordinary story of Enlightenment ideals, female leadership and the fight to promote science over superstition. 'A rich and wonderfully urgent work of history' Tristram Hunt

Understanding how Covid-19 started is more important than we know for the future of humankind. Determining whether the virus came from nature or from a lab will help us to safeguard against the next pandemic.This disease will forever punctuate modern history. It has led to the deaths of millions, sickened hundreds of millions and affected the lives of almost every person on the planet. We now know that Covid is here to stay.Genetic engineering expert Dr Alina Chan and renowned science writer Matt Ridley examine the origins of SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for Covid-19, using their formidable skills to scrutinise arguments and rigorously analyse the sprawling data. Viral is a fascinating account that takes in pangolins, horseshoe bats, internet sleuths and misleading scientific papers. It details the evidence and investigates hypotheses for the virus origin, chief among them a potential laboratory leak or a natural spillover.Science has made great strides over the last decades. Chan and Ridley give an insight into the proliferating pathogen research and virus hunting around the world. Whatever the source of the virus, the world needs to adopt new policies and strategies to prevent or mitigate future outbreaks.Set in the caves and mineshafts, food markets and wildlife smugglers' stores, laboratories and databases of China and elsewhere, Viral is a page-turner that reads like a detective novel and goes deeper into the deepest mystery of the day than any other work.This is the book on the search for the origin of Covid-19.