Con Plague

Synonyms:	blorch PAX pox PAX plague Festival plague Nerd flu Committee crud Trekkionaire's disease Con-stipation
See also:	Covid-19 and Fandom Con Funk 6-2-1 rule Post-Con Depression
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Con plague, also known as con crud, post-con flu, and several other similiar variations, is a term for contracting physical illness after attending a convention or another type of fan gathering. It is associated with viral diseases that are usually non-life-threatening, such as the common cold and influenza. However, more serious diseases have appeared in cases of con crud, such as swine flu at PAX Prime 2009, or COVID19 at many post-2020 cons.

Con plague is caused at conventions due to large numbers of people gathering and interacting in a single confined, indoors space. Other factors may exacerbate the spread of con plague, such as poor hygiene, improper food handling, stress, lack of sleep, and travel. The ongoing issue of con plague and con funk has caused some convention attendees and vendors to promote healthy habits to help prevent the spread of disease.

Notable Examples

• [1976]: "No more will Mr. Gerrold's dulcet voice selling original xeroxed scripts boom over the whining PA system, no more will Devra Langsam trip over curled carpets, no more will Ike Asimov drool over nubile, young trekkies, no more will the committee crud be caught from the drinking water. It is the End of an Era."

• [1977]: On the back cover of Star Trek America -- 1977 -- A Retrospective: "Well, as you've probably heard by now, about half the people at the con ended up sick during the next week, with some mysterious weakening ailment. Dubbed Trekkionaire's disease (or con-stipation) or as Lori Chapek-Carleton calls it, 'the convention crud.' It was probably caused by those hot dogs, or the hotel ice, or that 'banana cream pie from the kitchens of Landru' from the banquet."

• [1997]: "So, all in all a fun weekend, [but] I now have the mandatory post-con case of laryngitis/cold."

Voltrana

In 1993, at a convention they helped run for the show's 30th anniversary, several members of Sarah J. Groenewegen and Kate Orman's Doctor Who fan community contracted a "pretty nasty con crud" they named Voltrana, after a hotel voicemail of someone attempting to pronounce Romanadvoratrelundar. Apparently, those who got it ended up gay, and those who didn't, didn't.

Further Reading

• Coronavirus & Con Crud: Staying healthy during convention season, ^{Archived version} by Monica Duarte (Temple of Geek, 2020)
• Dealing with Con Crud, ^{Archived version} by Usagi Medical Group
• Let's Talk About... Con Plague, ^{Archived version} tumblr post by Whisky Cow (2017)

External links

• Con Crud at DragonCon Wiki
• Con Crud at WikiFur