Yersinia pestis – Infection, Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Treatment

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Yersinia pestis – Gerneal Infection, Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Treatment

Yersinia pestis, the culprit behind the infamous Black Death, spread by rat fleas, has cast a shadow over human civilization, taken the lives of countless peasants and nobles alike like a violent brute who murders invariably. There are three major forms of infection stages, the bubonic plague, the septicemic plague, and the pneumonic plague (primary and secondary), all are lethal if not treated with proper antibiotics. Due to similar symptoms, clinical diagnosis, the distinction between a common cold and a lethal infection is made difficult. However, though a potent murderer, Yersinia pestis can be easily eliminated by antibiotic treatment; survivors of the disease may be scarred.

The plague has always been a shadow overcastting the dawn of mankind; it had hid in the darkness, where the rodents roam and the poor dwell; it had unleashed its terror upon, claiming the souls of nobles and peasants alike. There are a total of five major plague outbreaks, including the infamous Black Death of medieval Europe, which wiped away half of its population. Yersinia pestis, the culprit behind the Black Death, are Gram-negative bacteria that are septicemic and extremely infectious. Though humans are highly susceptible to the microorganism, its main hosts are rodent species such as rats and squirrels, and are only transmitted onto humans when infectious fleas regurgitates animal blood while feeding on us.

Yersinia pestis infection comes in three forms: bubonic, septicemic, and pneumonic; the pneumonic plague is the deadliest. The rodent epidemic is transmitted unto humans when Y. pestis “are transmitted by fleabite, enters the lymphatic [system]

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and migrate to the re...

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...6.

Microorganisms and Bioterrorism. Ed. Anderson, Burt, Friedman, Herman, and

Maaro Bendinelli. Springer: 2006.

Kopp, Elizabeth, and Medzhitov, Ruslan. “A Plague on Host Defense.” The Journal of Experimental Medicine. .

“Plague Fact Sheet.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Department of Health and Human Services. 30 March, 2005. 26 July, 2006. .

“Plague Prevention and Control.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Department of Health and Human Services. 30 March, 2005. 26 July, 2006. .

VeriMed Healthcare Network. “Plague.” Medline Plus. 17 June, 2005. 26 July, 2006. .

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