Plague Bubonic Research Papers Examples

English

The plague, the decease, which wiped off the face of the earth almost one-third of its population, leaving people die in misery, left the big mark in the history as the most devastating pandemic. This deadly decease may kill two thirds of the infected human beings without an appropriate treatment. There are three types of plague: bubonic plague, which concentrate the infection in the lymph nodes, septicemic plague at the blood vessels, and pneumonic plague in the lungs. The bubonic plague is caused by the Yersinia pestis, the bacterium that was named after a Swiss bacteriologist in 1894. Yersinia pestis bacterium is mainly found in places with bid number of rat infecting, so this infection can be transmitted without troubles. This bacterium is so irresistible, that, as scientists believe, was a cause of the Black Death that devastated Europe in the 14th century. The bubonic plague occurred after the bites of the infected fleas. After the flea bit the human, the bacilli are moving to the lymph nodes and multiply rapidly, forming tumors, called buboes. The mortality from the bubonic plague was from 35 to 75 %. This disease is commonly associated with the Europe of the Middle Ages and so called the Black Death. There are some opinions from where exactly the plague came from. Nowadays evidences assume that the bubonic plague may have engendered in ancient Egypt, and nor in Asia, as it was suggested before. During all the pandemics, people asked one question why this terrible illness killed so many people? Scientists still wonder about the amount of people died because the bubonic plague. So, why this illness was the grim tragedy of the past and if there any possibilities of such wide outbreak of the bubonic plague in out times?
It is generally agreed today that there were three main outbreaks of the bubonic plague. The first was the Plague of Justinian at the 6th century. This outbreak was the first recorded pattern of the bubonic plague and happened in the Eastern Roman Empire. This outbreak was named after the emperor Justinian I. As history says, this pandemic killed 40% of the population of Constantinople. Today’s data says that a half of the Europe’s populations died. The reason why the outbreak happened exactly in Constantinople was the status of the town at that time. Being the capital of the empire, the city imported the grain from Egypt. The infected rats, which were brought to the Constantinople was the reason of the subversive pandemic. As the result, in the city 10,000 of people died daily, but the emperor Justinian was cured. The outbreak continued through the 7th and 8th centuries, but was less massive until the 14th century.
The second and the most known pandemic appeared in Europe of the 14th century. The Black Death, originated in China, reached the Europe territory in 1348. After DNA researches in 2010, it is officially known that the Black Death in 14th century in Europe was caused by Yersinia pestis bacterium. Supposedly, that other forms of the plague was caused by this bacterium. As the disease was engendered in China, it spread throughout the Europe by ships and the Silk Road. At the end of the 1346, the epidemic reached the Europe lands. According to the facts, in the 1347 the first European city where plague appeared was Caffa in the Crimea. After that, the Genoese merchants by ships spread the plague to the Sicily and the whole South Europe and after that, the infection covered the northern lands. The illness reached Italy in winter 1348, and then expands to the northwest of the mainland, attaching France, Spain. By June 1348, England was covered with dead bodies. Then, up to 1350, the bubonic plague attacked to Germany and Scandinavian. Late in the Black Death came to Russia in the 1351.
During these years, there were also outbreaks of the bubonic plague at the Middle East. In 1347, the epidemic reached some cities of Egypt, Palestine and Syria. In that way almost one-third of the world’s population was killed be the bubonic plague.
During the next few centuries, there also were several outbreaks of the epidemic. For example, the well known epidemic in London in 1665, in Marseille in 1720 and in Vienna in 1679.
The third pandemic appeared in 19th century in China. In 1855, the disease spread throughout the word. Only in India, 10 million of people died because of the plague.
The rest parts of the world were not the exception. Since 1944, plague attacked the United States. In addition, until 1993 almost 90% of all cases were registered at the West Coast.

The Hawaii suffered from the plague outbreak in the 1899.

Because of the shipping, Australia survived through 12 pandemics of the plague from 1900 to 1925.
In 1994, the bubonic plague epidemic was place on the record in India.
As it was mentioned above, the bubonic plague is caused by the Yersinia pestis bacterium. The people get infected because of the rat flea. The bacterium is harmless for the flea itself. When the flea bites the rodent or other mammal, the bacterium spread throughout the lymph and began to proliferate rapidly.
The bubonic plague is characterized by painful inflammation of the lymph nodes with the formation of “buboes”. The most often of the most inguinal nodes, rarely axillary nodes. The patient has fever and severe intoxication. Usually, the symptoms of the bubonic plague appeared suddenly.
Also, there were cases, when infection gets into the lungs. Such complications will lead to the other form the plague – the pneumonic plague. The danger in such cases is that this kind of plague can be transmitted from person to person without participation of the fleas or the animals.
In the fatal case as the result of the bubonic plague, short before the death it can be change to the third king of the plague – the septicemic plague. In such cases, the person may be infected through the contact with the ill patient. The possibility to be infected by the fleas is still present in the case of the septicemic plague.
Until the end of XIX century, plague practically was not treated. Although, there were some cases, when bubonic plague patients recovered spontaneously.
Historically, the bubonic plague was the first form of plague, which was treatable. First cured patients appeared with the invention of anti-plague vaccines, and the introduction in clinical practice of streptomycin and other antibiotics. Almost all patients recovered, if treatment is started in time.
Nowadays, with the development of the science, there are several kinds of the antibiotic drugs, which are essential in curing the bubonic plague. If the bubonic plague patients are treated in time, the mortality is about – 1-15%.
The person with obvious bubonic plague symptoms should be taken to the hospital immediately and get the treatment. To prevent death, the patient should be receive antibiotics within 24 hours. People who had got contacted with the patient, should be given antibiotics too. Statistics show that if person within 12 hours receive the antibiotic streptomycin, the treatment will be successful.
Despite the fact that there is the treatment against the bubonic plague and the level of mortality is 15%, the plague bacterium could stiffen resistance to the antibiotics. However, such resistance has been found once Madagascar, in 1995.
For the prevention of such violent and terrible disease as bubonic plague, the government should inform the citizens at the time, when the bubonic plagues is active. In addition, people, in their turn, should obey all the rules to not be infected.
Nowadays, scientist cannot guarantee that the bubonic plague will not emerge again. Of course, with the development of the modern medicine, there is a vaccine against this disease. Scientist asset bubonic plague is a disease that will continue to happen. However, representatives of the medical industry are convinced that they have all necessary drugs t o treat the world from such terrible illness as bubonic plague. The only barrier on the way to the successful treatment may be the constant movement of people around the globe. Of course, one should not forget about the Yersinia pestis’s ability to develop the resistance against modern powerful drugs.

Works Cited

Haensch,, S., Bianucci, R. and Signoli, M. (2010). Distinct Clones of Yersinia pestis Caused the Black Death. [online] http://journals.plos.org. Available at: http://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1001134 [Accessed 11 Apr. 2015].
Inoyori, R. (2014). Black Death and Bubonic Plagues May Return to Cause Modern Day Outbreaks Killing People in 24 Hours. [online] http://au.ibtimes.com. Available at: http://au.ibtimes.com/black-death-bubonic-plagues-may-return-cause-modern-day-outbreaks-killing-people-24-hours-1330546 [Accessed 11 Apr. 2015].
Vaesa, J. (2014). Digging up the Black Death: What Caused the Black Plague, and Are We In Danger?. [online] http://www.decodedscience.com. Available at: http://www.decodedscience.com/digging-black-death-caused-black-plague-danger/44166 [Accessed 11 Apr. 2015].Vyas, J. (2013). Plague. [online] http://www.nlm.nih.gov. Available at: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000596.htm [Accessed 11 Apr. 2015].
http://www.who.int, (2014). Plague. [online] Available at: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs267/en/ [Accessed 11 Apr. 2015].