Experts raise alarm as plague kills dozens in Madagascar
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Darth Sidious
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(CNN)An outbreak of the plague has killed dozens in Madagascar, and experts fear those numbers could go up.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/01/31/health/madagascar-plague/index.html?eref=rss_topstories
At least 119 cases were confirmed by late last year, including 40 deaths, the World Health Organization said in a statement.
And the disease is taking an alarming turn.
"The outbreak that started last November has some disturbing dimensions," the WHO said this week. "The fleas that transmit this ancient disease from rats to humans have developed resistance to the first-line insecticide."
It's especially spreading in densely populated slums in the capital of Antananarivo.
Cases were confirmed in at least 20 districts and the capital, Christophe Rogier of the Institut Pasteur de Madagascar said late last year. Rogier is part of a team working with the WHO on the ground to combat the disease.
Rodents and rains
The plague is caused by Yersinia pestis, a bacteria found in rodents and spread by fleas.
Recent flooding in the nation has displaced tens of thousands of people and an "untold numbers of rats," leading to fears the disease could spread, said Margaret Chan, director-general of the World Health Organization.
How is it spread?
Once an infected flea bites human beings, they can develop the bubonic plague, which is marked by swollen lymph nodes.
If the bacteria reaches the lungs, one can develop pneumonic plague.
The pneumonic type is rare but more dangerous than bubonic plague because it can be transmitted between humans through inhalation and coughing.
"If diagnosed early, bubonic plague can be successfully treated with antibiotics," the World Health Organization said. "Pneumonic plague, on the other hand, is one of the most deadly infectious diseases; patients can die 24 hours after infection."
At least 8% of cases advance to pneumonic plague, the WHO said. It's unclear what percentage of the current cases comprise the more lethal plague.
Past plague epidemics have have occurred in Europe, the United States, Africa, Asia and South America.
The plague was known as the "Black Death" in Europe in the 14th century, and led to the deaths of 50 million people, the WHO said.
Epidemics throughout history
430 bc
Smallpox is caused by the variola virus, which spreads through skin-to-skin contact or contact with ? fluids. It can also be spread through the air.
In 430 B.C., smallpox killed more than 30,000 people in Athens, Greece, reducing the city’s population by at least 20%.
541 ad
The Plague of Justinian, which began in 541 and continued on and off for nearly 200 years, killed 50 million people in the Middle East, Asia and the Mediterranean basin, according to some estimates. The plague is caused by bacteria that are spread by rats that were bitten by infected fleas.
1334
What's known as the Great Plague of London actually started in China in 1334 and spread along trade routes, wiping out entire towns. Florence, Italy, lost a third of its 90,000 residents in the first six months. Overall, Europe lost 25 million people.
1519
There were approximately 25 million people living in what is now called Mexico when Hernando Cortes arrived in 1519. A smallpox epidemic killed between 5 and 8 million of the native population in the following two years. Over the next century, less than 2 million would survive this and other communicable diseases brought by European explorers.
1633
Smallpox reached Massachusetts in 1633, brought by settlers from France, Great Britain and the Netherlands. It quickly spread to the Native American population, which had up until now been free of this communicable disease. It’s unclear how many were killed by smallpox, though historians estimate some 20 million may have died after the Europeans landed.
1793
Philadelphia was struck with a yellow fever epidemic in 1793 that killed a 10th of the city's 45,000-person population
1860
The Modern Plague began in the 1860s and killed more than 12 million people in China, India and Hong Kong. It wasn’t until the 1890s that people figured out how the bacterial infection was being spread and a vaccine was created.
1901
A smallpox epidemic in Boston infected 1,500 people in 1901. There were 270 reported deaths.
1910
The largest plague outbreak in the 20th century occurred in Manchuria between 1910 and 1911. Approximately 60,000 people died. The plague still occasionally causes smaller outbreaks in parts of sub-Saharan Africa.
1918
The great flu pandemic of 1918 and 1919 is estimated to have killed between 30 million and 50 million people worldwide. Among them were 675,000 Americans.
1984
In 1984, scientists identified the human immunodeficiency virus, or ? , as the cause of AIDS. That same year the deadly disease killed more than 5,500 people in the United States. Today more than 35 million people around the world are living with an ? infection. More than 25 million people have died of AIDS since the first cases were reported.
2003
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, better known as SARS, was first identified in 2003 in China, though the first case is believed to have occurred in November 2002. By July more than 8,000 cases and 774 deaths had been reported.
2009
The global H1N1 flu pandemic may have killed as many as 575,000 people, though only 18,500 deaths were confirmed. The H1N1 virus is a type of swine flu, which is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by the type A influenza virus.
2012
n 2012, approximately 122,000 people worldwide died from the measles, a highly contagious disease caused by a virus. Typhoid fever kills around 216,000 people a year. Tuberculosis, an infectious bacterial disease, killed an estimated 1.3 million in 2012. These are some of the infectious diseases that most concern health officials today
http://www.cnn.com/2015/01/31/health/madagascar-plague/index.html?eref=rss_topstories
At least 119 cases were confirmed by late last year, including 40 deaths, the World Health Organization said in a statement.
And the disease is taking an alarming turn.
"The outbreak that started last November has some disturbing dimensions," the WHO said this week. "The fleas that transmit this ancient disease from rats to humans have developed resistance to the first-line insecticide."
It's especially spreading in densely populated slums in the capital of Antananarivo.
Cases were confirmed in at least 20 districts and the capital, Christophe Rogier of the Institut Pasteur de Madagascar said late last year. Rogier is part of a team working with the WHO on the ground to combat the disease.
Rodents and rains
The plague is caused by Yersinia pestis, a bacteria found in rodents and spread by fleas.
Recent flooding in the nation has displaced tens of thousands of people and an "untold numbers of rats," leading to fears the disease could spread, said Margaret Chan, director-general of the World Health Organization.
How is it spread?
Once an infected flea bites human beings, they can develop the bubonic plague, which is marked by swollen lymph nodes.
If the bacteria reaches the lungs, one can develop pneumonic plague.
The pneumonic type is rare but more dangerous than bubonic plague because it can be transmitted between humans through inhalation and coughing.
"If diagnosed early, bubonic plague can be successfully treated with antibiotics," the World Health Organization said. "Pneumonic plague, on the other hand, is one of the most deadly infectious diseases; patients can die 24 hours after infection."
At least 8% of cases advance to pneumonic plague, the WHO said. It's unclear what percentage of the current cases comprise the more lethal plague.
Past plague epidemics have have occurred in Europe, the United States, Africa, Asia and South America.
The plague was known as the "Black Death" in Europe in the 14th century, and led to the deaths of 50 million people, the WHO said.
Epidemics throughout history
430 bc
Smallpox is caused by the variola virus, which spreads through skin-to-skin contact or contact with ? fluids. It can also be spread through the air.
In 430 B.C., smallpox killed more than 30,000 people in Athens, Greece, reducing the city’s population by at least 20%.
541 ad
The Plague of Justinian, which began in 541 and continued on and off for nearly 200 years, killed 50 million people in the Middle East, Asia and the Mediterranean basin, according to some estimates. The plague is caused by bacteria that are spread by rats that were bitten by infected fleas.
1334
What's known as the Great Plague of London actually started in China in 1334 and spread along trade routes, wiping out entire towns. Florence, Italy, lost a third of its 90,000 residents in the first six months. Overall, Europe lost 25 million people.
1519
There were approximately 25 million people living in what is now called Mexico when Hernando Cortes arrived in 1519. A smallpox epidemic killed between 5 and 8 million of the native population in the following two years. Over the next century, less than 2 million would survive this and other communicable diseases brought by European explorers.
1633
Smallpox reached Massachusetts in 1633, brought by settlers from France, Great Britain and the Netherlands. It quickly spread to the Native American population, which had up until now been free of this communicable disease. It’s unclear how many were killed by smallpox, though historians estimate some 20 million may have died after the Europeans landed.
1793
Philadelphia was struck with a yellow fever epidemic in 1793 that killed a 10th of the city's 45,000-person population
1860
The Modern Plague began in the 1860s and killed more than 12 million people in China, India and Hong Kong. It wasn’t until the 1890s that people figured out how the bacterial infection was being spread and a vaccine was created.
1901
A smallpox epidemic in Boston infected 1,500 people in 1901. There were 270 reported deaths.
1910
The largest plague outbreak in the 20th century occurred in Manchuria between 1910 and 1911. Approximately 60,000 people died. The plague still occasionally causes smaller outbreaks in parts of sub-Saharan Africa.
1918
The great flu pandemic of 1918 and 1919 is estimated to have killed between 30 million and 50 million people worldwide. Among them were 675,000 Americans.
1984
In 1984, scientists identified the human immunodeficiency virus, or ? , as the cause of AIDS. That same year the deadly disease killed more than 5,500 people in the United States. Today more than 35 million people around the world are living with an ? infection. More than 25 million people have died of AIDS since the first cases were reported.
2003
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, better known as SARS, was first identified in 2003 in China, though the first case is believed to have occurred in November 2002. By July more than 8,000 cases and 774 deaths had been reported.
2009
The global H1N1 flu pandemic may have killed as many as 575,000 people, though only 18,500 deaths were confirmed. The H1N1 virus is a type of swine flu, which is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by the type A influenza virus.
2012
n 2012, approximately 122,000 people worldwide died from the measles, a highly contagious disease caused by a virus. Typhoid fever kills around 216,000 people a year. Tuberculosis, an infectious bacterial disease, killed an estimated 1.3 million in 2012. These are some of the infectious diseases that most concern health officials today
Comments
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retro.
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The user and all related content has been deleted.
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More blk ppl dying....
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How soon until some white muthafucka in Madagascar is on a plane to the US?
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More blk ppl dying....
Who knows how they identify bruh. They are Southeast Asian and Bantu.
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How soon until some white muthafucka in Madagascar is on a plane to the US?
? . He on that flight right now. -
How the hell are these diseases just coming out of nowhere? Its more to this ? ..
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MasterALFrank wrote: »How the hell are these diseases just coming out of nowhere? Its more to this ? ..
What are you talking about? The timeline I presented shows these events have occurred and been recorded thousands of years. It's not new.
The only one that has been eradicated ( outside of the lab ) is smallpox which is fantastic because what it does to a person I won't even show in a spoiler.
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MasterALFrank wrote: »How the hell are these diseases just coming out of nowhere? Its more to this ? ..
This isn't really some new ? . These diseases have been around and have killed a ton of people before. Some diseases dont die out they just get isolated. I agree the ? rigged tho. -
I don't think many people realize we have the good old 'black death' right here in the united states..
http://www.cdc.gov/plague/maps/
Between 1900 and 2010, 999 confirmed or probable human plague cases occurred in the United States. Over 80% of United States plague cases have been the bubonic form. In recent decades, an average of seven human plague cases have been reported each year (range: 1–17 cases per year). Plague has occurred in people of all ages (infants up to age 96), though 50% of cases occur in people ages 12–45. It occurs in both men and women, though historically is slightly more common among men, probably because of increased outdoor activities that put them at higher risk
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fortyacres&amule wrote: »So ebola had a spark when it started but now its just garbage ?
Too many people started reading old papers about it and learning things like; if exposed to small amounts you have a high likelihood of overcoming the illness. That the only people who died from it, were the ones who bled internally and that the virus can be killed on surfaces with bleach. -
Darth Sidious wrote: »I don't think many people realize we have the good old 'black death' right here in the united states..
http://www.cdc.gov/plague/maps/
Between 1900 and 2010, 999 confirmed or probable human plague cases occurred in the United States. Over 80% of United States plague cases have been the bubonic form. In recent decades, an average of seven human plague cases have been reported each year (range: 1–17 cases per year). Plague has occurred in people of all ages (infants up to age 96), though 50% of cases occur in people ages 12–45. It occurs in both men and women, though historically is slightly more common among men, probably because of increased outdoor activities that put them at higher risk
Got dam who knew the Bubonic plague is still alive and well out west...
and lol & smh at the one case of the Plague being caught in Chicago..just add that to the list of ? up things in Chicago
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