A large number of the population of Europe in the XIV century was destroyed by a plague, which is also called a black death. These terrible incidents are forever remembered by people, immortalized by the work of many artists. After mass deaths, the disease repeatedly took the lives of the people of many countries. Even now it is considered especially dangerous. What is a bubonic plague disease, how can a flea penetrate the body, and what treatment is needed for the patient?
What is bubonic plague
Black death is one of the oldest medieval diseases that can occur anywhere in the world. Plague in Europe in the Middle Ages was one of the most terrible pandemics. The causative agent of the disease is the highly contagious bacterium Yersinia Pestis, which, if possible, immediately parasitizes on rodents. A person is prone to fleas where a large number of animals are affected. Basically, this is the countryside, buildings where they are looking for food and shelter for rats, mice, gophers, chipmunks.
Why is it called
? The bacterium of the plague is transmitted by physical contact, then it enters the lymphatic system. Near the lymph nodes and places where the infection got, local foci of inflammation form. It looks like seals that can reach lemon sizes, then abscesses are possible, converting them into soft cones. When they are opened, there is an unpleasant smell. Such sources of inflammation are called buboes. Hence the name of this species of plague.
History of bubonic plague
For 3 centuries, the plague killed millions of people, destroyed entire cities. Only after many years, scientists have identified the causes of the plague epidemic and the ways of its treatment. The source of the disease is carried by rats, and the population, trying to escape the scourge, was shut in their homes. Such actions only aggravated the situation, because the life of that time was not equipped with the necessary sanitary and hygienic means.
Rats were the usual inhabitants of each dwelling, because the fight against them was unsuccessful. In a confined space, harmful bacteria spread faster. After the beginning of the pandemic, doctors of that time began to come up with a variety of protective equipment to ensure personal safety. A form of clothing consisting of a long black raincoat, leather trousers, a mask with a beak was considered to be a popular, effective method.
Historically, three pandemic plague were recorded. The first is called "Justinian plague", which destroyed the population of Egypt and the Roman Empire( 526-566 biennium).The second - the "black death"( 1346-1351 gg) captured the Crimea, the Mediterranean, the West of Europe. This wave is the largest, which claimed more than 50 million lives. The third raged on the territory of India and Hong Kong( 1895), losses amounted to 12 million people. During this period, the main discoveries were made about the sources of the disease, which allowed inventing methods of treating the disease and preventing epidemics.
As transmitted by
The bacteria are fleas that live on the skin of rodents. The most dangerous for humans are all kinds of rats: gray, red and black. Infection of a person can occur in various ways. The transmissible method of infection occurs through the bite of an infected fly. This is possible because of close contact with the animal. This way to infect a person is obtained through the blood. The presence of a high risk of infection is observed in people in unsanitary conditions, workers in pet stores, veterinary clinics.
A plague-induced illness is transmitted by removing and processing the skins of infected rodents( or camel carcasses).Nutritional method also takes place - so, the plague can be ill with the use of foods that are infected with plague bacteria. Plague infection by airborne droplets occurs when in contact with a patient with a pulmonary form of the plague.
The bacterium penetrates through the wound on the human skin, mucous membranes. At the site of the infectious agent, redness or sores may form. On the lymphatic vessels, the bacillus affects the nearest lymph node, which rapidly increases and inflames, and there begins to multiply. The ingestion of a microorganism into the general bloodstream leads to its spread throughout the body, which ensures severe intoxication.
The causative agent of
The bearer of such a terrible disease is a plague rod - a bacterium belonging to the family of enterobacteria. In order to develop under natural conditions, the plague bacillus had to adapt for a long time. This is responsible for the growth and development of the microorganism, which:
- grows in simple and nutritious areas;
- has a different shape;
- contains more than 35 types of antigens that increase life expectancy;
- is resistant to environmental conditions, but dies by boiling;
- has two pathogenicity factors that easily provoke a rapid effect on the body;
- is not able to withstand antibiotics.
Incubation period
Pathogens penetrate the circulatory system through the skin, and, after they enter the lymph nodes, the primary inflammation begins. The incubation period is 3-6 days - this is the time necessary for the symptoms of the disease to begin to manifest themselves actively. During the epidemic, time is reduced to 1-2 days. The maximum incubation period is 9 days.
Symptoms of
Often, after infection with a bacterium, a bubonic type of disease occurs. At the infected on the affected area there is a slight reddening, which quickly develops into a pustule, after opening an ulcer arises. A week after the communication with the patient, sudden fever, headache, weakness, chills, lymph node enlargement, cough with phlegm are observed. This is the consequences of a flea bite. If an infected person does not take medical measures on time, then the infection can move to other parts of the body.
The skin above the seals becomes reddish and shiny. After 4 days, the inflammations become softer, when tapped they move. After opening, fistulas form. From the first day there may be increased nervousness, severe muscle pain. For the plague, such signs are also characteristic: the patient's face darkens, circles appear under the eyes, the tongue becomes covered with bloom, the heart rhythm is disturbed. Black plague can be complicated by meningitis.
Diagnosis
The main methods for diagnosing plague are epidemiological information, bacteriological studies, anamnesis. In the investigation for the detection of an infectious plague disease, sowing of the abscess juice is carried out. Juice is produced by two methods: syringe pick-up, or with saline injected inside the inflammation, and secondary intake of fluid into a new syringe.
It is compulsory to sow isolations of the infected, with subsequent isolation from it in the laboratory of pure plague bacteria for more detailed study. When diagnosing plague, it is important to understand its distinctive features from tularemia( its ulcerative-bubonic type).They lie in the fact that with tularemia there are no painful sensations during palpation of the affected lymph nodes.
Treatment of bubonic plague
The plague disease is treated exclusively by specialized hospitals, or, if necessary, in temporarily organized hospitals. During treatment, disinfection of the discharge of the infected is mandatory. All subjects with which there was interaction, necessarily undergo special treatment. All actions are carried out by the personnel only if there are special protective suits. The most effective drugs, which are prescribed in the main cases of plague, are tetracycline, used orally, and streptomycin, administered intramuscularly.
The plague drug
Plague bubo is treated with antibiotics. They are used intramuscularly and inside of inflammations. In addition, the patient is attributed symptomatic therapy, which helps to cope with other manifestations of the consequences of a terrible infection. The patient continues to recover successfully after three negative results of bacteriological culture. Then, after a month at the hospital, the patient is discharged, and he is registered with an infectious disease specialist for 3 more months.
Prevention
A mandatory requirement for the detection of a virus is the isolation of a patient with plague from other people. Isolation is made to persons who have been in contact with the patient. The septic treatment of the place of residence is carried out, quarantine is imposed on the populated area, people are immunized with the vaccine. For preventive maintenance, there is also a constant control of the number of rodents, the performance of disinsection work according to a strict scheme.
Plague in our time
To date, this disease can be found on the territory of Iran, Nepal, Brazil, Mauritania. In our country there were no cases of plague before the 70s of the XX century, but the possibility of an outbreak of the epidemic exists and worries many. The last cases of plague were recorded in 2009 in China, and 4 years later on the territory of Kyrgyzstan.