ABSTRACT
Influenza and humans are long-time companions. The disease may have been mentioned by Hippocrates as early as in the 412 B.C. as ‘‘the cough of Perinthus’’ in his work Of the Epidemics. The first clear description of influenza dates to 1100s [1,2]. The word ‘‘influenza’’ is originating from the fourteenth century Italy meaning ‘‘flow of liquid’’ or ‘‘influence,’’ the latter perhaps suggesting its use by the contemporary scholars to describe the impact of the stars on the appearance of influenza epidemics. In English, influenza is commonly abbreviated to ‘‘flu.’’ The synonym grippe is more often used in other languages including French, German, Russian, and Spanish.
