A man in New Mexico has died after being hospitalized for bubonic plague, health officials reported.
This is New Mexico’s first death from the disease since only 2020 – surprising the lot of us who would have believed the plague to be a relic left in the Dark Ages.
Back in 2020, four people in New Mexico had the bubonic plague. There was another case in 2020.
Bubonic plague is caused by a bacteria named Yersinia pestis and is often spread by fleas on rodents and squirrels.
Humans can catch the plague by being bitten by infected fleas or by close contact with an infected animal.
Symptoms of plague can include a sudden onset of fever, nausea, weakness, chills, muscle aches and swollen lymph nodes.
Symptoms typically begin within two to eight days of exposure, officials said.
Nowadays, it is treated with antibiotics – though can still lead to death if untreated for too long.
Plague cases among humans in the United States mostly occur in rural areas of the western U.S., but the disease is more common in parts of Africa and Asia, the CDC said.
Health officials advise people to avoid contact with rodents and fleas, prevent pets from approaching sick or dead rodents and keep rodents out of their homes, says Medical XPress.
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