Oregon Confirmed a Human Case of the Bubonic Plague. It Was Likely Caused By a Cat

A case of the bubonic plague has hit Oregon, and the likely cause was a cat. Health officials in Deschutes County announced last week that a resident, who has not been identified, had been diagnosed with the plague, in the state’s first human case in eight years. The individual was likely infected by their cat, the department says. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] “All close contacts of the resident and their pet have been contacted and provided medication to prevent illness,” said Dr. Richard Fawcett, the Deschutes County Health Services Officer.   The disease is often spread through a bite from an infected flea or contact with an infected animal. Human to human transmission can occur, but is rare.  The Oregon case was identified early and the person was treated swiftly, according to officials. They added the case doesn’t pose a significant risk to the community, and no other cases have been reported in the state, according to health officials. The last case of the plague in Oregon was reported in 2015. Though the plague is infamous for killing more than a third of Europe’s population—about 25 million people—from 1347 to 1351, it’s now easily treatable with modern antibiotics. However, if not treated quickly, the disease can progress to infection in the bloodstream and lungs and cause serious illness and death. In humans, symptoms usually appear between two to eight days after exp...
Source: TIME: Health - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized News Desk Source Type: news