Bubonic+Plague

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 * A severe bacterial infection in the lymph nodes
 * The organism that causes the disease is called //Yersinia pestis//
 * **Taxonomy:** Bacteria; Proteobacteria; Gammaproteobacteria; Enterobacteriales; Enterobacteriaceae; Yersinia
 * **Description:** Gram-negative straight rods; sometimes look spherical in shape.

The Black  Death was a medieval pandemic that killed millions of people and stayed around for centuries. It swept through Asia and Europe, infecting and killing so many people that there weren’t even enough people alive to bury the dead. The Black Death was a plague that existed in three interrelated forms, the bubonic plague being the most common and widespread. (The other two forms are the pneumonic plague and septicemic plague.) 25 million people were killed in just two years and a third of the European population was wiped out. It was a tragic time in history and is a disease that left an unforgettable mark on the world.

//**"Ring around the rosy, a pocket full of posies, ashes, ashes, we all fall down!**"// Did you know that this children's rhyme is actually about the Bubonic Plague? //Ring around the rosy?// A red, rosy rash in the shape of a ring around the neck was a common symptom of this disease. //Pocket full of posies?// People filled their pockets with sweet smelling herbs (posies) as they believed that the disease was transmitted by bad smells! //Ashes, ashes//... Can you guess what this means? The cremation of the dead bodies. (In the English version, "ashes" is replaced with "a-tishoo" as sneezing was another violent symptom!) And we all fall down!



**Symptoms****:** chills, fever, general malaise, headache, muscle pain, black spots (caused by internal bleeding), painful lymph gland swelling called buboes //(become evident 2-5 days after// //exposure)// **Other Complications:** with the infection spilling into the bloodstream, complications will arise in the liver, spleen, and lungs; people who are infected could develop a severe bacteria pneumonia; people can enter into a severe state of mental confusion; if left untreated, the disease could develop into a predominately pnuemonic form; 50-60% of untreated people will die of the disease.

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 * Immediate treatment is a must
 * If the infected is not treated within 24 hours of when symptoms first start showing, death could result
 * Without treatment, about 50% of people will die

**Antibiotics used:** streptomycin, gentamicin, doxycycline, or ciproflaxacin can be used**.** **Other Treatmen****ts:** oxygen, intravenous fluids, and respiratory support are usually required**.**

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 * Spread by the bite of an infected rat flea[[image:rats.jpg align="right" caption="Rats that carried the infected fleas" link="@http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/epidemics/4/1"]]
 * Spread lymphatic and systemic





<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;"> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">**Vaccine:** only available for high-risk workers (i.e. military workers, animal handlers); requires multiple doses, frequent booster shots; have major side effects; no vaccine for general public <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">**Other ways:** Rat control and being on high alert for the disease in wild rodent populations; environmental sanitation; raising awareness/educating the public on how to avoid and prevent exposure; antibiotics given to a person who has had close exposure to a possible-infected animal.



<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">@http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001622/ <span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">@http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/plague/ http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/ep-mu/plague-eng.php#p1 @http://www.atsu.edu/faculty/chamberlain/Website/lectures/lecture/plague.htm @http://hamap.expasy.org/proteomes/YERPE.html @http://www.rhymes.org.uk/ring_around_the_rosy.htm @http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/plague.htm http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/health-and-human-body/human-diseases/plague-article/
 * __Resources:__ **

<span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; position: absolute; top: 4386px; width: 1px;">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pneumonic_plague <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; position: absolute; top: 4199px; width: 1px;">http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/epidemics/4/1