1929 – Lethargic encephalitis (sleeping sickness), int’l. list #23. Mortality Statistics 1929 –1,313

Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 2-14-2025 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/

–1,313  Bureau of the Census, US Dept. of Commerce. Mortality Statistics 1929, Table II, p. 99.

Narrative Information

Wikipedia: Encephalitis lethargica is an atypical form of encephalitis. Also known as “sleeping sickness” or “sleepy sickness” it was first described in 1917 by neurologist Constatin von Economa and pathologist Jean-René Cruchet. The disease attacks the brain, leaving some victims in a statue-like condition, speechless and motionless. Between 1915 and 1926, an epidemic of encephalitis lethargica spread around the world. The exact number of people infected is unknown, but it is estimated that more than one million people contracted the disease during the epidemic, which directly caused more than 500,000 deaths. Most of those who survived never recovered their pre-morbid vigour.

“Signs and Symptoms

“Encephalitis lethargica is characterized by high fever, sore throat, headache, lethargy, double vision, delayed physical and mental response, sleep inversion and catatonia. In severe cases, patients may enter a coma-like state… and, separately or in relation to an immune response, links to pathologies of infectious disease – viral and bacterial

“Cause: “The causes of encephalitis lethargica are uncertain. Though it used to be believed that it was connected to the Spanish flue epidemic, modern research provides arguments against this claim. Some studies have explored its origins in an autoimmune response, such as in the case of influenza, where a link with encephalitis is clear….”

Sources

Bureau of the Census, U.S. Department of Commerce. Mortality Statistics 1929 (Thirtieth Annual Report). Washington: GPO, 1932. Accessed 2-14-2025 at:

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsushistorical/mortstatsh_1929.pdf

Wikipedia: “Encephalitis Lethargica.” 12-1-2024 update. Accessed 2-14-2025 at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Encephalitis_lethargica