The plague, known historically as the Black Death that ravaged Europe in the Middle Ages, is not a disease of the past at all. Its fires are activated from time to time in some countries in Africa, Asia and America - where we like to go on vacation. Now a new plague has been discovered in China - in the Inner Mongolia region. Find out what the symptoms of the plague are, how is it treated and when vaccination is necessary.

Plague(Black Death, Plague, Plague) is an infectious disease - zoonosis caused by the plague stickYersinia pestis , so called from its discoverer - the French physician Alexander Yersin, who in 1894 developed a serum against the plague.

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Plague is spread mainly by rats, but also by other small rodents - squirrels, wild rabbits, voles, gophers, dormice. Fleas transmit germs to humans from infected animals. Only the pulmonary form of the plague can be infected by airborne droplets. When the germs enter the body, they first attack the lymph nodes and then spread blood throughout the body. Since there are still active outbreaks of plague in the world, it is worth deciding to vaccinate before going to the areas where this disease occurs.

Plague bacteria have been used as biological weapons for centuries. The Tatars used it for the first time in the 14th century - they catapulted the bodies of those who died of the plague into the besieged Kaffa fortress. In Manchuria, the Japanese tested bombs filled with contaminated fleas. During the Cold War, both the Russians and the Americans worked on the combat use of the plague.

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Plague - symptoms

Doctors - due to the extent of the infection and the violence of the course - distinguish three forms of the plague.

  • Bubonic plague

The bubonic plague starts with a very high fever with chills. Lymph nodes in the armpits and groin get bigger, they move under the surface of the skin and become very painful - they are called bubo. After a few days, the buboes soften and crack, pus comes out of them, petechiae appear on the skin.

After some time, gangrene appears in the blood vessels of the fingers and nose,so they start to turn black - and hence the historical name of the disease. These symptoms are accompanied by circulatory failure and neurological disorders. Half of the untreated patients with this type of plague die.

  • Pneumonia

The pulmonary form of the plague is one of the most contagious and most serious diseases that can be infected by humans. Germs enter the respiratory tract by airborne droplets and cause inflammation. The first symptoms are fever and cough - typically dry and tiring cough, then the patient begins to cough up fluid, then blood - hemoptysis appears. Soon symptoms of respiratory failure and circulatory failure appear and as a result the patient - not treated - dies within 2-5 days. The most common cause of death is pulmonary edema. Pulmonary plague can also be a complication of bubonic form.

  • Septic Plague

The septic form of plague develops very rapidly. Severe symptoms appear, related to a disturbed reaction of the immune system to the intrusion of the plague stick into the body, and within 2-3 days the person dies. Sepsis plague can be a complication of pulmonary or bubonic plague, or it may appear as a primary form.

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Plague - treatment

In endemic areas, that is, where the disease is still preserved, its diagnosis is not difficult due to the clear symptoms. The diagnosis is confirmed by testing for the presence of plague sticks in the material collected from the patient (blood, saliva, purulent content from the lymph nodes).

If the disease is diagnosed promptly and the doctor applies appropriate treatment immediately, it is no longer fatal as a rule, although up to 15 percent of those infected still die.

Plague is treated with antibiotics (streptomycin, gentamicin, cephalosporins, tetracycline) administered through a drip. Isolation of the sick is necessary only for those suffering from the pulmonary form of the plague. The treatment lasts for two or three weeks.

Plague - vaccination

To minimize the risk of contracting the plague on exotic travels, get vaccinated. The vaccine contains the dead plague bacteria. It is worth knowing, however, that it is only effective in preventing the bubonic form of this disease; does not protect against droplet infection.

Regardless of vaccination, please:

  • avoid contact with wild animals (alive and dead)
  • avoid being bitten
  • use insect repellant
  • hygienic

Plague sticks are sensitive to popular disinfectants and hightemperature.

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Category:

Infectious diseases