Medicine: Flu in Russia

Russia was in the grip of Asian flu last week. Word filtered through the Soviet censorship that the widespread epidemic has hit the great cities of western Russia as well as towns in Siberia and the Caucasus. Leningrad was reported to have closed all schools for the first ten grades. In Moscow 500 doctors plus extra nurses and medical students were assigned to hospital duty. Vaccine, though claimed to be effective, was admittedly scarce; medical workers had top priority; next, those in transportation and communications.