Preparing for the next Influenza Pandemic: Bangladesh Perspective

The threat of an influenza pandemic looms large over the world. Many experts believe that another influenza pandemic is virtually impossible to avoid. Within one hundred years the world has witnessed three major influenza pandemics: the 1918-19 “Spanish flu”, the 1957-58 “Asian flu,” and the 1968- 69 pandemic or “Hong Kong flu”. The most devastating of the three, the 1918-19 “Spanish flu” was responsible for an estimated 40 million death worldwide. The currently circulating H5N1 subtype of Influenza A virus is considered as the most likely cause of the next influenza Pandemic.