Could war spark the next pandemic?

War is the perfect petri dish for disease. In the conflicts of
the 18th and 19th centuries, many more troops died of illnesses
than in battle. And, at the start of the 20th century, the
Spanish Flu pandemic emerged out of the chaos of the First World
War.


With anti-microbial resistance on the rise and HIV cases soaring
among Russian soldiers, might ‘Disease X’ – the mystery pathogen
that could cause the next pandemic – be lurking in Ukraine, or
Gaza, or Sudan? 


In the first episode of a brand new Global Health Security Series
for Battle Lines, Venetia Rainey is joined by Arthur Scott-Geddes
to ask: Could war spark the next pandemic?  


We hear from Amesh Adalja, Senior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins
University Center for Health Security about pandemic preparedness
and how war zones breed disease. 


Plus, Laura Spinney, author of best selling book, Pale Rider,
explains how the First World War paved the way for the Spanish
Flu to kill up to 100 million people.  


Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan


Executive Producer: Louisa Wells


Studio Operator: Meghan Searle


Contact us with feedback or ideas: 


battlelines@telegraph.co.uk 


@TelGlobalHealth


@venetiarainey 


@ascottgeddes


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