Novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) – reminiscent of Spanish flu: A challenge to global public health systems

Abstract

Unexpected occurrences of infections in the form of outbreaks are no longer exceptional. The world is encountering infection outbreaks of different types, with coverage, at times, having global ramifications. Going through the archives, one can see that there have been deadly outbreaks that have changed the course of human history. The plague that peaked from 1347 to1351, for example, affected the landscape of Europe and the world, wiping out 17% of the then 450 million global population (1).