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A New Mexico man has died of the bubonic plague.

In a statement released on Friday, theNew Mexico Department of Health(NMDOH) announced the death of an unidentified man from Lincoln County.

According to the NMDOH, the man’s death was the first reported human case of the bubonic plague in New Mexico since 2021 and the first death since 2020, when there were four reported human cases of the plague in the state.

The organization said it is contacting area residents to trace the potential spread of the disease and assessing the environment in the community to identify any ongoing risk.

Illustration of a plague.Getty

Plague bacteria (Yersinia pestis), computer illustration. Y. pestis are gram-negative bacteria from the Enterobacteriaceae family, they have an ovoid shape with bipolar staining (more intensively stained at poles). The bacterium causes bubonic plague (the Black Death of the Middle Ages). The bacterium is primarily a flea-carried pathogen of rats. Transfer to man occurs when a flea is obliged to leave its dead rodent host and feed on human blood. Infection is rapid, causing swellings in the lymph nodes (buboes) and leading to septicaemia and pulmonary infection. Extensive control measures, directed against the rats as well as their fleas, have essentially banished the plague from Europe, but there are still many regions of the world where the disease occurs.

The bubonic plague is a “bacterial disease of rodents and is generally spread to humans through the bites of infected fleas,” the NMDOH said, adding that symptoms in humans include fever, chills, headache or weakness. Patients also commonly experience “painful swelling of the lymph node in the groin, armpit or neck areas.”

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According to NMDOH, it can also be transferred to humans who have had direct contact with an infected animal, including dogs or cats that are permitted to hunt outside of the home. To avoid the disease, department officials recommend that people keep their distance from sick or dead rodents and rabbits and areas they’ve been living.

Symptoms of the plague in animals, meanwhile, can include fever, lethargy and loss of appetite, the NMDOH said, adding that in order to prevent the spread of the plague in one’s household, owners should regularly talk to their pet’s veterinarian about flea control, keep their living areas clean and see a doctor if experiencing symptoms.

The patient in that case responded “very well to antibiotic treatment,” Dr. Richard Fawcett, a health officer for Deschutes County, Oregon, told the outlet.

It was the state’s first reported human case in a decade.

source: people.com