A trip down virus lane

I'm trying to remember what the popular viruses were before Everyone's Favorite Virus™️ showed up.

You would have to include any of the common STDs. Hepatitis B is one candidate that goes straight after the liver. Herpes is another classic one with telltale cold sores. You have HPV, which is a relative newcomer and for which the vaccine somehow gets more attention than the virus. Finally, you have HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

Aside 1 - Twenty years ago when I was teaching junior high kids, I had a safety signal anytime a kid was bleeding. I would point at the blood and shout, "AIDS!" I had to carefully explain that I was not suggesting that the unfortunate student who was bleeding had AIDS. I merely wanted to call attention to the fact that there was blood present, and all the kids should avoid contact. The signal worked, and soon all the kids would automatically point and shout "AIDS!" anytime they saw a fellow student bleeding.

You don't hear much about measles, mumps, and rubella perhaps because most people in the US are vaccinated against these viruses at an early age.

Rabies is another one that seems to have gone out of favor. As a kid, I remember they told us to be aware of dogs who were foaming at the mouth because they might have rabies.

Aside 2 - I wonder if a man has ever been bitten on the face by a dog while shaving. The dog would be seen as foaming at the mouth, but is that from rabies or contact with Gillette Cool Gel shave cream?
I was thinking about this while driving around today.
2022-01-31 00:39:35