English sweating sickness was a mysterious contagious infectious disease of the 15th and 16th centuries, the cause of which is still unknown. It owes its name to the unusual foul-smelling perspiration during the course of the disease, as well as its main occurrence in England. Usually this disease took a rapid course and ended fatally.
What is English sweating sickness?
English sweating sickness, also known as English sweat, was a very contagious infectious disease that began suddenly and often resulted in death within a few hours. This disease first appeared in England in August of 1485. It quickly reached the English capital, London, and claimed thousands of lives there. The term English sweat or English sweating sickness is due to the formation of large quantities of foul-smelling sweat. English sweat spread in five epidemic waves. After the year 1578, this disease no longer occurred, at least in England. After that, there were still similar epidemics in Europe. But the infections that occurred were additionally accompanied by eczema, which was not the case with the classic five outbreaks. Epidemics of English sweating sickness took place in 1485/86, 1507, 1517, 1528/29, and 1551/52. Each epidemic wave claimed several thousand lives, although the severity of the disease varied from epidemic to epidemic. During the second epidemic, for example, there were fewer deaths in relation to the number of people who fell ill than during the first wave of the disease. The starting point of the epidemics was always England. But the disease always spread throughout Europe during an outbreak. It is true that the first four epidemics occurred together with outbreak waves of the plague. However, the symptoms of the two diseases differed considerably. Nevertheless, contemporary chroniclers referred to the disease outbreaks together with the plague as pestilence. English sweating sickness, however, often led to death even more quickly than the plague itself. After the second wave of disease with fewer deaths, the third epidemic in 1517 claimed a high number of lives throughout Europe. In many cities, for example, half the population is said to have died. The fourth outbreak in 1528/29 was even more severe. During this epidemic, many birds also contracted a mysterious disease in parallel. Possibly it was the same pathogen. It is also mysterious that this disease suddenly appeared in 1485 and just as suddenly disappeared after the year 1578, without ever returning. However, a similar disease appeared in Europe in the following centuries, but it was associated with a skin rash. Thus, this disease, called Picard’s sweating fever, differed from the English sweating disease.
Causes
To date, nothing is known about the cause of English sweating sickness. However, according to the transmission and the course, it must have been an infectious disease. The disease was transmitted very quickly from person to person. It has not yet been possible to determine which pathogen was involved. Suspicions included influenza viruses, hantaviruses, pathogens transmitted via lice and fleas, or parasites. Poisoning with the so-called ergot was also held responsible for the epidemic. However, this is very unlikely, as the clearly established contagion potential is more in favor of infection. The catastrophic hygienic conditions at the time probably also had a major influence on the outbreak of the epidemic. Why the disease mostly affected sturdy men between the ages of 15 and 42 is also puzzling. Women, children, and the elderly rarely contracted English sweat. Possibly the spread on the warlike battlefields plays a role.
Symptoms, complaints and signs
English sweating sickness was characterized by a sudden onset with massive anxiety, headache, chills, dizziness, sore throat, shoulder pain, and aching limbs, as well as extreme exhaustion. This stage lasted only briefly between half an hour and three hours. Only after this did sudden sweating occur with a high fever. The sweat was very foul smelling. The sweating occurred abruptly and apparently without reason.The symptoms rapidly worsened with the development of nausea, vomiting, severe headache, racing pulse, extreme thirst, delirious states and nosebleeds. Heart palpitations and severe heart pain were typical. A seizure very often resulted in death. However, those who survived the first seizure could often experience several more seizures and die from them. However, there were also people who survived the English sweating sickness. These include the famous Anne Boleyn, a wife of King Henry VIII. Survivors, however, often suffered their entire lives from bouts of violent heart palpitations and night sweats.
Diagnosis
English sweating sickness was recognized by the symptoms that appeared. Which pathogen was responsible for the disease was never known. It is true that some victims of this disease were identified in 2001. However, the pathogen DNA could not be analyzed in them.
Complications
Significant discomfort and complications occur with English sweating sickness. However, this disease does not occur today, so there are no particular complications. However, in most cases, English sweating sickness led to the death of the patient due to the limited treatment options of the earlier eras. In most cases, the affected suffer from high fever and pain in the limbs. Anxiety and panic attacks also occur. Patients continue to suffer from chills and sore throats. The pain can also affect the shoulders, so that there are significant restrictions on the patient’s movement. In most cases, there is also very heavy sweating due to the high fever. The pulse increases enormously due to English sweating sickness. Not in every case the English sweating sickness led to death. However, people could get sick again with this disease and continue to die from it. However, it was not uncommon for the sweating sickness to cause night sweats and heart trouble even after it had subsided. Since the disease no longer occurs today, it does not need to be treated. Due to this disease, the life expectancy of patients is significantly limited and reduced.
When should you go to the doctor?
Although the disease does not normally occur nowadays, a visit to the doctor is necessary at the first signs of the condition. Without treatment, a fatal course is imminent, so seeing a doctor early is of particular importance. Complaints such as sudden and unexplained anxiety and sweating are considered unusual. If the complaints persist over a longer period of time or increase in intensity, a visit to the doctor should be made as soon as possible. A doctor should be consulted as soon as severe headaches and pain in the limbs develop for no apparent reason. In case of a general feeling of illness, dizziness and unsteadiness of gait, it is advisable to consult a doctor. High fever, nausea and unexpected vomiting should be examined and treated by a physician. Severe nosebleeds, disturbances in heart rhythm, elevated blood pressure, and palpitations should be evaluated by a physician. A life-threatening condition exists that requires immediate intervention and medical attention. A visit to the doctor is necessary if there is chest pain and a persistent feeling of malaise. If the usual level of performance drops, there are problems with concentration and a general weakness, a doctor is needed. If the symptoms increase rapidly within minutes or a few hours, an emergency doctor must be called. First aid measures are to be taken until the latter arrives.
Treatment and therapy
Today, English sweating sickness apparently no longer occurs. Today’s therapy of the disease would be based on the type of causative pathogen. In those days, there were no treatment options at all, especially since the disease broke out suddenly and without any warning. The course of the disease was left to chance.
Outlook and prognosis
English sweating sickness was a serious infectious disease in the 15th century, the outlook and prognosis of which was usually fatal for affected individuals. At the time, there were no treatment options that promised improvement or cure. Individual symptoms intensified from day to day, so that the fever rose to 40 degrees and in some cases there was also severe palpitations.In many cases, the symptoms and complaints subsided completely after a week, before a considerably more severe episode of the complaints occurred. Many affected individuals died from this renewed episode of English sweating sickness. Some survived this persistent infectious disease severely weakened. Re-infection with viruses and bacteria was fatal in many cases, even if English sweating sickness was survived completely. English sweating sickness did not recur for several hundred years. The prospect of a complete cure was very poor at the time. Many affected individuals died from this infectious disease because there were no targeted treatments or effective and efficient medications. In modern times, English sweating sickness could be effectively controlled with antibiotics, so the prospect of complete recovery would look very good.
Prevention
Since English sweating sickness does not occur today, recommendations for its prevention are not relevant. In those days, higher standards of hygiene could certainly have prevented an outbreak of the disease.
Aftercare
The affected person has no or only very few measures and possibilities of aftercare available for this sweating disease. In this case, the patient is primarily dependent on an early and rapid diagnosis, so that further complications and complaints can be avoided. There is also no self-healing, with the symptoms usually worsening if no treatment for sweating sickness is initiated. Therefore, the main focus of this disease is early detection. The treatment of English sweating sickness usually depends on the exact underlying disease, so that no general prediction can be made. In many cases, however, the underlying disease cannot be found, so that the affected person is thereby dependent on a purely symptomatic treatment. In general, the patient should wear light and airy clothing when suffering from this sweating disease. This should also be done when sleeping. Regular check-ups and examinations by a doctor are also necessary to check the condition of the sweating sickness. Not infrequently, contact with other sufferers of sweating sickness can also be useful, as this can lead to an exchange of information. Usually, this disease does not reduce the life expectancy of the affected person.
This is what you can do yourself
English sweating sickness was last observed in the late 16th century. Because the causes of the mysterious disease have never been determined, no self-help measures can be derived in the highly unlikely event of a new outbreak. As with all aggressive infectious diseases, a physician should be consulted immediately in the first case and the risk of infection to third parties minimized. In the historical context, all known self-help measures at the time were useless. Even the practice, especially by aristocratic and wealthy middle-class families, of fleeing to the countryside did not protect against infection or outbreak of the disease.
