Facts
Top 10 Deadliest Viruses Of All Time
A virus. Just a term for something that has the potential to completely ruin a normal life. Viruses are one of the deadliest things in this world. So here is the list of the top 10 deadliest viruses to shook and scare you. We must learn from these previous pandemics and viruses and try to be more prepared than ever while taking care of ourselves and our loved ones.
Marburg virus
The mortality rate in the first outbreak was 25%, but it was more than 80% in the 1998-2000 outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as in the 2005 outbreak in Angola, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
The Black Death
The plague changed the course of Europe’s history. With so many dead, labor became harder to find, bringing about better pay for workers and the end of Europe’s system of serfdom. Studies suggest that surviving workers had better access to meat and higher-quality bread. The lack of cheap labor may also have contributed to technological innovation.
Rabies
Although rabies vaccines for pets, which were introduced in the 1920s, have helped make the disease exceedingly rare in the developed world, this condition remains a serious problem in India and parts of Africa.
Smallpox
Mortality rates were far higher in populations outside of Europe, where people had little contact with the virus before visitors brought it to their regions. For example, historians estimate 90% of the native population of the Americas died from smallpox introduced by European explorers. In the 20th century alone, smallpox killed 300 million people.
Dengue
Dengue sickens 50 to 100 million people a year, according to WHO. Although the mortality rate for dengue fever is lower than some other viruses, at 2.5%, the virus can cause an Ebola-like disease called dengue hemorrhagic fever, and that condition has a mortality rate of 20% if left untreated. “We really need to think more about the dengue virus because it is a real threat to us,” Muhlberger said.
Influenza
The most deadly flu pandemic, sometimes called the Spanish flu, began in 1918 and sickened up to 40% of the world’s population, killing an estimated 50 million people.
Rotavirus
Although children in the developed world rarely die from rotavirus infection, the disease is a killer in the developing world, where rehydration treatments are not widely available.
Ebola virus
The first known Ebola outbreaks in humans struck simultaneously in the Republic of Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1976. Ebola is spread through contact with blood or other body fluids, or tissue from infected people or animals. The known strains vary dramatically in their deadliness, Elke Muhlberger, an Ebola virus expert and associate professor of microbiology at Boston University, told Live Science.
HIV
An estimated 32 million people have died from HIV since the disease was first recognized in the early 1980s. “The infectious disease that takes the biggest toll on mankind right now is HIV,” Adalja said.
Coronavirus (Covid-19)
The coronavirus outbreak came to light on December 31, 2019, when China informed the World Health Organisation of a cluster of cases of pneumonia of an unknown cause in Wuhan City in Hubei Province. Subsequently, the disease spread to more Provinces in China, and the rest of the world. The WHO has now declared it a pandemic. The virus has been named SARS-CoV-2 and the disease is now called COVID-19.
So this was the list of the top 10 deadliest viruses of all time. If you liked these then also check more amazing lists by clicking here.
Cybersecurity Guide for Parents: Keeping Kids Safe on the Internet
