The Plague

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The Plague
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The Plague was carried by rat-fleas via the ports
of the Black Sea from Asia to Europe. It is
transmitted between rodents by rodent fleas and
can be transmitted to people through infected
rodent flea bites. It can also be transmitted to
humans through direct contact with infected
animal tissue.
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Fleas are blood sucking parasites. They have the
potential of spreading dangerous diseases to
humans and other animals. It is possible the
first flea was native to Africa and traveled by
boat on the back of a rat to different
destinations around the world. The flea's body is
only about one tenth of an inch.
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A flea's mouth has two functions one for
squirting saliva or partly digested blood into
the bite, and one for sucking up blood from the
host. This process mechanically transmits
pathogens that may cause diseases the flea might
have. Fleas smell exhaled carbon dioxide from
humans and animals and jump rapidly to the source
to feed on the newly found host. A flea is
wingless so it can not fly, but it can jump long
distances with the help of small powerful legs.
Although its body is only one tenth of an inch, a
flea can use its legs to jump up to 200 times its
own body length. It can also jump about 130 times
its own height.
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Onset of plague is usually 2 to 6 days after a
person is exposed. Initial symptoms include
fever, headache, and general illness, followed by
the development of painful, swollen regional
lymph nodes. The disease progresses rapidly and
the bacteria can invade the bloodstream,
producing severe illness, called plague
septicemia. Progression leads to blood infection
and, finally, to lung infection. There are
three main forms of plague in humans Bubonic
Plague which causes Buboes Septicaemic
Plaguewhich travels through the Bloodstream and
Pneumonic Plaguewhich causes Pneumonia
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• Bubonic plague is the result of an insect bite in
  which the plague bacillus travels through the
  lymphatic system to the nearest lymph node. The
  lymph node then becomes inflamed and is followed
  by bubo formation (swellings). The inflation of
  the lymph nodes takes place in the neck, armpit
  or groin. Fever, headache, chills, and weakness
  are also symptoms. Without prompt and effective
  treatment, 50-60 of bubonic plague cases are
  fatal. It does not spread person to person.

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The bacteria (Yersinia pestis) then multiplies
inside the flea blocking the flea's stomach
causing it to be very hungry. The flea would then
start voraciously biting a host. Since the
feeding tube to the stomach is blocked , the flea
is unable to satisfy its hunger. As a result, it
continues to feed in a futile attempt to satisfy
its hunger. During the feeding process, infected
blood carrying the plague bacteria flows into the
human's wound. The flea soon starves to death.
This causes the septicaemic plague. It is the
most rare form of all. The mortality rate was
close to 100 and today there is still no
treatment. Symptoms include a high fever and
skin turning deep shades of purple due to DIC
(disseminated intravascular coagulation). It does
not spread person to person.
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Pneumonic plague is an infection of the lungs
that spreads from person to person through the
air. It does so through droplets sprayed from the
lungs and mouth of an infected person. The
droplets carried the bacteria that caused the
plague. The bacteria entered the lungs through
the windpipe and started attacking the lungs and
throat. It produces severe pneumonia. Shortness
of breath, chest pain, cough, and sometimes
bloody or watery sputum follow soon after. The
pneumonia progresses for 2 to 4 days and may
cause respiratory failure and shock. Victims die
by choking on their own blood.
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Now that You know what the Plague is, lets see
what it has done. The next slides contain some
silly facts and some important facts.
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Precautions Avoid any contact with live or dead
rodents
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Ring Around the Rosy "Ring around the rosy" -
Rose-colored purpuric macules "Pocket full of
posies" - Sweet-smelling flowers that those
tending the sick would carry to ward off the
stench of disease "Ashes, ashes" - Impending
mortality or "A-choo, a-choo" - The sneezing and
coughing of pneumonic plague "All fall down" -
Death
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DISASTER STRIKES Estimated population of Europe
from 1000 to 1352.          1000 38 million
         1100 48 million          1200 59
million          1300 70 million         
1347 75 million          1352 50 million 25
million people died in just under five years
between 1347 and 1352
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Some animals that have been the source of the
Plague in the U.S. are Rock squirrels and their
fleas in the southwestern states. The California
ground squirrel and its fleas in the Pacific
states. Several rodent species including prairie
dogs, wood rats, chipmunks, and other ground
squirrels and their fleas. Deer mice and voles
are known to maintain the disease in animal
populations but are less important as sources of
human infection. Some others include wild
rabbits, wild carnivores, and even antelopes.
Domestic cats, and sometimes dogs, are infected
by fleas or from eating infected wild rodents.
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A plague epidemic in Viet Nam from 1966 to 1972
was largely responsible for the increased plague
activity during the mid-sixties.
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10 July 2003Disease Outbreak Reported As of
9th July, the Ministry of Health, Algeria has
reported a total of 10 laboratory confirmed cases
and 1 probable case of Plague in Oran district.
As of 23 June, the Ministry of Health, Algeria
has reported a total of 10 cases, 8 cases of
bubonic plague and 2 of septicemic plague, one of
which was fatal, in Tafraoui, on the outskirts of
Oran. Cases have been treated with antibiotics
and preventive measures have been taken. To date,
no new cases have been officially reported.
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Plague is an endemic in many countries in Africa,
the Americas and Asia. In 1999, 14 countries
reported 2,603 cases to WHO (including 212
deaths). These figures are comparable with the
annual average figures (2,547 cases, 181 deaths)
for the previous 10 years (1988-1997). Over the
past decade, 76.2 of the cases and 81.8 of the
deaths were reported from Africa.
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Europe, 1349 Bands of hooded men, wearing white
robes marked front and back with a red cross, are
moving to and fro across Europe, attempting to
atone for the ravages of the Black Death by
whipping themselves in ritual public ceremonies.
The Flagellant Brahren, as they are known,
believe that the plague is a punishment for human
sin, and that by scourging themselves they can
show mankind's repentance. They travel in parties
of anything from 50 to 500 men, and are high ly
organized. Led by a layman - the master - they
move from town to town to perform their rituals.
Singing hymns and sobbing, the men beat
themselves with scourges studded with iron
spikes. Blood gushes from their many wounds, and
the spikes embed themselves in the torn flesh.
The ritual is perform ed in public twice each
day. Such exhibitions are highly influential.
The establishment may focus their attacks on
church corruption and their promotion of a wave
of savage anti-Semitism. but the masses worship
the flagellants as living martyrs. Their deeds
are to be admired and their commands to be
carried out.