Survivors of 1918 Flu Pandemic Immune 90 Years Later

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Dr. Marc Siegel, an associate professor of medicine at New York University School of Medicine in New York City, thinks that people who developed this strong immune response may have been infected with a less deadly strain of flu before 1918.

"The implication of this study is the 1918 virus was so powerful that the immunity you had to have in order to survive was so prominent that it lasted for the rest of your life," Siegel said.

However, Siegel noted that some people may have had experience with a similar less deadly flu virus that prepared their immune system to handle the 1918 strain.

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"So, those in certain age groups who had seen a related virus had the strongest responses," Siegel said. "Either they died, or they developed a profound immune response," he said.

Siegel expects if there is another flu pandemic, some people will develop a lifelong immunity as they did in 1918.

More information

For more on avian flu, visit the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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