Plague | Yersinia pestis bacterium | Deadly Disease

Plague is generally described as an illness which you can get from Yersinia pestis bacterium. Usually, you can get the most common form called bubonic plague through flea bites but you can get the other form of plague called pneumonic plague from someone who is infected. In the past, plague caused deadly pandemics and it still exists in some countries today. If you are treated with antibiotics quickly, you can survive with plague. One of the most common ways for humans getting plague is through a flea bite.

Usually, plague disease is treated with antibiotics. If not treated the illness properly it will lead to even death.

Types

The three types of plague:

• Bubonic plague 

• septicemic plague 

• Pneumonic plague 

Each named because of the part in your body gets infected with Yersinia pestis bacterium

Symptoms of plague

Some of the symptoms of plague will happen in all forms of plague and some signs will depend on whether you have bubonic, septicemic or pneumonic plague.

Symptoms of plague include:

• Fever.

• Chills.

• Headaches and body aches.

• Weakness and fatigue.

• Dizziness

• Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

• Swollen, painful lymph nodes for bubonic plague.

• Severe abdominal pain and bleeding from your nose, bleeding from your mouth or bleeding under your skin for septicemic plague infection.

• Breath issues, chest pain, cough and bloody or watery mucus for pneumonic plague infection.

Causes

Generally, the bacterium Yersinia pestis or Y. pestis causes plague. Rats and other animals can carry the bacterium but humans can get infection through flea bites or lice carrying the bacteria. Usually, Yersinia pestis will get into your lymph nodes, bloodstream or lungs and it makes you sick.

How does plague spread?

Yersinia pestis bacterium causes plague and it can spread to people through animals or by other people. You can get the plague through:

• Get the flea or lice bite: fleas bite rats and other animals which are infected with Y.pestis, then it bites you.

• From an infected animal: you can get the infection by touching the body fluid or tissues of an Y. pestis infected animal.

• From another person. If someone is infected with Y. pestis in their lungs through pneumonic plague form, you can get the infection if they cough or sneeze on you.

And animals also get the plague from other animals.

What animals carry plague?

Mostly, people all think that rats are only carriers of infection but many other animals can also carry and spread the disease. Which animals are having plague usually depends on where you live. Research states that plague can affect:

• Rodents such as rats, mice, prairie dogs, ground squirrels, gerbils and guinea pigs.

• Other small mammals

• Pet like dogs and cats

• Deer

• Camels

Diagnosis

Common signs of bubonic plague are swollen and painful lymph glands called bubo. Your physician might suspect the plague if you have a flea bite or a bubo.

You should make sure that you mention to your physician if you:

• Recently visited the places where there are many plague infections or you live in that places

• Recently bitten by fleas

• Are handling infected animals

• Having one or more painful lymph nodes.

To diagnose plague, your provider will take a blood sample and you spit mucus or phlegm or lymph node fluids. And your provider will send the sample to a lab to identify the signs of Yersinia pestis bacterium.

Treatment

Usually, plague needs to be treated with antibiotic drugs right away. Your provider will give the drugs to you either through your veins (IV) or you take it as a pill. Depending on your signs and risk, you may start taking antibiotic medications even before your physician has your test results.

Medications

You can take medicine through your mouth or through your veins to treat the plague. Your provider may prescribe one or more of below antibiotic medicines.

• Ciprofloxacin.

• Levofloxacin.

• Moxifloxacin.

• Doxycycline.

• Gentamicin.

• Streptomycin.

• Chloramphenicol.

• Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole.

Complications of plague

Complications of plague will happen immediately and also cause some life-threatening illness which includes:

• Tissue death and loss of limbs.

• Meningitis is the inflammation of the lining inside the brain.

• Organ failure.

• Respiratory failure.

• Gangrene: blood clots usually form in the small blood vessels of the fingers,toes,nose and ears. This makes tissues to die. That dead tissues need to be removed.

• Pharyngeal plague. In rare cases, it can be present in the tissues behind the nasal cavity and mouth called the pharynx. This disease is called pharyngeal plague.

Prevention

You can reduce your chance of getting plague by avoiding flea bites and should be careful around animals which are infected.

• Where wild animals live in places like clear piles of brush, wood, trash or other places. You do not leave pet foods out or feed them to wild animals.

• You must wear the DEET bug spray

• You should ask your veterinarian how to prevent fleas.  Because pet dogs and cats can spread.

• You should wear gloves while you are handling an infected animal. You have to wear gloves when you handle both living and dead animals.

• If you live in places with plague, you do not let your pets roam free outside.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. What happens in plague disease?

Ans: It develops fever, headache, chills, and weakness and one or more swollen, painful lymph nodes.

Q2. Why is plague called Black Death?

Ans: Because most people who got the plague died, and many often had blackened tissue due to gangrene, bubonic plague was called the Black Death.

Q3. Can plague be cured?

Ans: Plague can be successfully treated with antibiotics.

Q4. Is there a plague vaccine?

Ans: Plague vaccines have been used since the late 19th century, but their effectiveness has never been measured precisely.

Q5. How is plague spread?

Ans: Bubonic plague is transmitted through the bite of an infected flea or exposure to infected material through a break in the skin.