Plague

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Flea

Plague

Definition:

Plague is a severe, and potentially deadly,infection. It is caused by the organism Yersinia pestis. Wild rodents, like rats, spread the diseaseto humans.

Alternative Names:
Bubonic plague; Pneumonic plague; Septicemic plague
Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

Plague isspread among rodents by a flea bite. Humans may get the plague when theytouch or eat the infected animal, or when they come in contact with it's feces.

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Certain forms of the plaguecan be spread from human to human. Whena plague victim with pneumoniacoughs, microscopic droplets carrying the infectionmove through the air. Anyone who breathes in these particles can catch the disease. An epidemic may be started this way. (In the Middle Ages, massive plague epidemics killedmillions of people.)

Plague is rare in the United States, but has been known to occur in parts of California, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico.

There three most common forms of plague are:

Bubonic -- an infection of the lymph nodes.
Pneumonic -- an infection of the lungs.
Septicemic -- an infection of the blood.

The incubation period is typically2 to 10 days, but may be as short as a few hours for pneumonic plague.

Risk factors for plague include a recent flea bite andexposure to rodents, especially rabbits, squirrels, or prairie dogs, or scratches or bites from infected domestic cats.

References:

Kool JL. Risk of person-to-person transmission of pneumonic plague. Clin Infect Dis. 2005 Apr 15;40(8):1166-72.

Cobbs CG, Chansolme DH. Plague. Dermatol Clin. 2004 Jul;22(3):303-12, vi.

Josko D. Yersinia pestis: still a plague in the 21st century. Clin Lab Sci. 2004 Winter;17(1):25-9.