Epidemiologists are also unsure that conceptualizing of pandemics as coming in “waves” is a useful concept, for both the current SARS-CoV-2 outbreak and past pandemics.

Pandemic 'waves' and the language of disease
The concept of “waves” in pandemics originated with the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, to describe the distinct outbreaks experienced over the course of the pandemic.

“The wave is kind of a metaphor that was applied to the 1918 pandemic that may not be a wave at all,” said Dr. Howard Markel, a medical historian at the University of Michigan. “It may be that they were hiding from it and as more people came out they were exposed to it.”

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