Home Lifestyle TOP 10 Deadliest Viruses on Earth

TOP 10 Deadliest Viruses on Earth

July 21, 2020

1086

Coronavirus COVID-19 — As a group, coronaviruses are common across the world. COVID-19 is a new strain of coronavirus first identified in Wuhan City, China in January 2020.

There are 320,000 different types of viruses that can infect mammals alone. The deadliest of these viruses are responsible for killing 15 million people every year. They are ancient. They are extremely lethal. and they can be found everywhere. killing millions of people every year! So far, there is no known form of life on earth that viruses cannot infect! Let’s go over the top 10 deadliest viruses that the world has ever seen.

Article Guide

Here are the Top 10 Deadliest Viruses on Earth

Spanish Flu

The Spanish flu, also known as the 1918 flu pandemic, was an unusually deadly influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 influenza A virus. Lasting from February 1918 to April 1920, it infected 500 million people–about a third of the world’s population at the time–in four successive waves. Wikipedia

Number of deaths: 50,000,000
Virus strain: Strains of A/H1N1
Suspected cases‡: 500 million (estimate)
Period: 1918 – 1920
Ebola

Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) is a rare and deadly disease in people and nonhuman primates. The viruses that cause EVD are located mainly in sub-Saharan Africa. People can get EVD through direct contact with an infected animal (bat or nonhuman primate) or a sick or dead person infected with the Ebola virus. If a virus can cause fear in the 21st century it is the Ebola and Marburg viruses. These viruses combined with some very unpleasant symptoms are potentially the deadliest viruses on earth today. Both these viruses have no effective treatment, no vaccine, and a fatality rate of up to 90%.
Measles

Measles has done a pretty good job of killing people throughout the ages. Over the last 150 years, the virus has been responsible for the deaths of around 200 million people. It has a yearly mortality rate of 197,000 deaths.

Measles symptoms appear 7 to 14 days after contact with the virus and typically include high fever, cough, runny nose, and watery eyes. The measles rash appears 3 to 5 days after the first symptoms.
Smallpox

Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by one of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The last naturally occurring case of smallpox was reported in 1977. In 1980, the World Health Organization declared that smallpox had been eradicated.

Measles has done a pretty good job of killing people throughout the ages. Over the last 150 years, the virus has been responsible for the deaths of around 200 million people. It has a yearly mortality rate of 197,000 deaths.
HIV & AIDS

Today, there are about 40 million people living with HIV. Sadly, only around half of those infected have access to the required drugs needed for treatment so the global death rate from AIDS is still shockingly high. Estimates suggest there are nearly 2 million deaths every year and over the last 30 years the virus has claimed over 25 million lives.
Corona Virus (COVID-19)

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus.

Most people infected with the COVID-19 virus will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment. Older people and those with underlying medical problems like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and cancer are more likely to develop serious illnesses.

According to WHO as of 20 July 2020, there have been 14,538,094 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 607,358 deaths.
Hepatitis B

Hepatitis B is a viral infection that attacks the liver and can cause both acute and chronic diseases. The virus is most commonly transmitted from mother to child during birth and delivery, as well as through contact with blood or other body fluids. Causes the largest share of fatalities each year, with a death toll of around 700,000. Although the overall death rate from hepatitis C is lower than B, it still kills an estimated 350,000 people every year.
Influenza

Influenza is a viral infection that attacks your respiratory system — your nose, throat, and lungs. Influenza is commonly called the flu, but it’s not the same as stomach “flu” viruses that cause diarrhea and vomiting. For most people, influenza resolves on its own.

Everybody gets flu and for the majority, it may not be nice but no big deal. That being said, every year, influenza is responsible for up to 500,000 deaths worldwide.
Rotavirus

Rotavirus is a genus of double-stranded RNA viruses in the family Reoviridae. Rotaviruses are the most common cause of diarrhoeal disease among infants and young children. Nearly every child in the world is infected with rotavirus at least once by the age of five.

Rotavirus also is known as the child killer, is a merciless virus that causes the deaths of more than half a million children every year. It is the leading cause of severe diarrheal illness among babies and young children.
Rabies

Rabies is a deadly virus spread to people from the saliva of infected animals. Rabies has been one of mankind’s most feared diseases since ancient times and with good reason. Infection with rabies occurs when bitten or scratched by an infected animal – most commonly dogs or bats. Nearly 60,000 people die of rabies every year. Most of these deaths occur in Africa and southern Asia.