Tag Archives: Bubonic Plague

What is this, 1350 A.D.?

by funklord

While the Bubonic Plague hit it’s stride in the late 14th century, this is not the first time we have covered it here at the FFP.  Remember back in September of last year we talked about a girl in Colorado who contracted this rare disease, and was successfully diagnosed and treated.  Unfortunately this is not the case in Madagascar.  There, the Bubonic plague has found new life.

Here is what it looks like under a microscope for those that are curious.  NOT ACTUAL SIZE:

bubonic plaguebubonic plague

bubonic plague

 

Overcrowding and a large rat population are contributing factors to it’s epidemic-like spread.  Remember that the disease is spread by fleas on rats.

fleaRemember these little bastards are hard to kill, and hard to see.  Obviously this picture is not to scale.   We are not that far away from an epidemic of antique diseases here in the U.S.  Just look at the large number of Measles outbreaks in the U.S. this year.

Back in Black Death *Story Update*

by funklord

As reported earlier this year, an Oregon man was saving a choking cat by pulling a mouse out of its throat.  His reward?  The cat bit him, and gave him the Bubonic Plague AKA Black Death.  He was hospitalized, put in intensive care, and was on the verge of death.  His family braced for the worst.  Somehow he managed to pull out of the tailspin and survive, but lost his toes and fingers.   He may have gotten Black Death, but he deftly dodges Real Death.

All because of a freak accident while being a good Samaritan.

Resurgent Diseases: California Edition

by funklord

And the pestilence train keeps coming.  In San Diego County, 3 squirrels were found to have Bubonic Plague.  If for no other reason, go to the website to see the front page picture.  It’s absolutely adorable.  While still common, and no cause for alarm (don’t start killing these furry nut eaters), I do feel like it needs to be documented based on the sheer number of strange diseases that are rearing their heads.  This disease usually spreads to humans from flea bites, just like when it wipes out 1/4 of Europe.  As I reported earlier, there was a case of Bubonic Plague in Oregon.  Stray cat bite was the culprit there.

In local news, Typhus is back!  Two people have contracted Typhus from fleas found in the Burbank area.

I mentioned this yesterday, but it strikes m that fleas are also great carriers of disease, much like mosquitoes.  Mosquitoes are more mobile, but fleas have almost exclusive access to human beings.  These two critters are perfect harbingers.

Also, and I will go into this in my next post, but West Nile is closing in on California residents.  Two dead birds were found to be infected.  There have been several cases in 11 counties in California, including Santa Monica, and Studio City.