Deschutes County, Oregon Health Services has confirmed an outbreak of plague in humans.
Central Oregon health officials say a pet owner has contracted a rare case of bubonic plague and they believe he may have contracted it from his cat.
Deschutes County Health Services confirmed a case of plague in a local resident last week. Health officials said in a Feb. 7 press release that the resident likely “acquired the infection from a symptomatic domestic cat.”
“All close contacts of residents and their pets have been contacted and provided medication to prevent the disease,” Deschutes County Health Officer Dr. Richard Fawcett said in a statement.
The case is the first outbreak of bubonic plague in Oregon since 2015, and outbreaks of plague in the state are “rare,” state health officials said.
Deschutes County health officials said the case was “fortunately” identified and treated at an early stage, so there was “little risk to the community.”
“No new cases of plague have been identified during the infectious disease investigation,” health authorities said in a statement.
How does bubonic plague spread?
The plague is transmitted to humans and animals through the bites of infected fleas and through contact with infected animals, according to the Oregon Health Authority.
To prevent the spread of plague, Deschutes County Health Services urges residents to avoid all contact with rodents and their potential for fleas, and to never touch sick, injured, or dead rodents. .
County health officials also said residents should not allow pets to approach sick or dead rodents or explore rodent burrows.
What are the symptoms of bubonic plague?
Health officials say plague symptoms usually begin to appear in humans two to eight days after exposure to infected animals or fleas.
Symptoms include a sudden onset of fever, nausea, weakness, chills, muscle pain, and/or visible swollen lymph nodes called buboes, state health officials said.
Is bubonic plague treatable?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says plague is a very serious disease, but it can be treated with antibiotics, usually for 7 to 14 days. According to the CDC, the plague can still be fatal if left untreated.
Bubonic plague dates back to the Middle Ages and killed millions of people in Europe before the era of antibiotics. At the time, people didn't know that the plague was transmitted by fleas that lived on rats.
According to the CDC, plague was first brought to the United States in 1900 on a rat-infested steamship.most common in the western United States
In August 2020, a California resident tested positive for plague, marking the first human outbreak of the disease in the state in five years.
The South Lake Tahoe resident who tested positive for the plague was an avid walker, and authorities said he was bitten by an infected flea while walking his dog along the Truckee River Corridor, El Dorado County said in a statement at the time. He announced that he thought there was a possibility that
