Pneumonic Plague in Madagascar

In the major cities ...

Black Death has three forms: bubonic, pneumonic, and septicemic.

In this outbreak which has killed 124 so far and infected well over 1,000, the plague has gone from just bubonic to pneumonic, meaning it's an airborne disease that spreads via sneezing and coughing because it's situated in the lungs more then the lymphatic system. It spreads more readily and kills more quickly. The number of cases in Madagascar doubled within a week, and if you do not receive treatment quickly, you will die. The good news is that it is treatable with antibiotics like all plague, but that's if you know you need treatment and get it fast.

Symptoms are like a general flu: fever, aches, nausea, vomiting.

This outbreak has also reached the main cities in Madagascar meaning that the infected could potentially board planes traveling out from the airport.

The worst case scenario would be an infected traveler sneezing and coughing on board the closed environment of an airplane and offloading a plane of sick travelers at the new airport. Mostly, they are worried about this spreading to neighboring African nations. There are mixed reports on whether or not this outbreak has yet peaked.

a reply to: ketsuko

oh....people could mistake it or the flu.....sick person on a plane..let's pray this doesn't happen
....this story we should keep an eye on

originally posted by: ketsuko
In the major cities ...

treatable with antibiotics like all plague,

At the moment...





RA

Frankly, I cannot fathom how we haven't had a major plague since the advent of international jet travel.

I also cannot process how we've avoided nuclear war, either.

And asteroid strikes ... been awhile.

Blight and famine...

rampaging rabid beasts... (trails off with sweat forming on brow)

Sounds like it might be time for a quarantine.

And locals should stock up on Penicillin while they still can.

a reply to: ketsuko

Once you've infected Madagascar it's pretty easy to beat the game.
www.crazymonkeygames.com...

Any chance of that from a news source and not The Sun?

a reply to: jokei

I always have much more trouble with Iceland. There's only way to infect them and they quarantine themselves fast.

a reply to: ketsuko

here is a link from CNN www.cnn.com...

This could be simply era-ending . The most seriously grievous news we've heard in all our lives quite possibly . From THe SUN of all newspapers .
thanks

originally posted by: jokei
a reply to: ketsuko

Once you've infected Madagascar it's pretty easy to beat the game.
www.crazymonkeygames.com...

Any chance of that from a news source and not The Sun?

All the times they shut the ports etc...

a reply to: GeneralMayhem

Like anything, the biggest danger to most developed countries would be that this gets in among the homeless where it could incubate.

That's the trouble San Diego and LA are having with Hepatitis A at the moment.

Otherwise, most people would be adequately cared for unless their doctors missed the diagnosis or they waited too long for treatment convinced they merely had a flu. Even the homeless would be except they have so many concentrated in those areas that the sanitation has made a huge challenge for preventing the spread of the disease, so they can't quite stop the outbreak.

Whenever I play pandemic, I always start in Madagascar.

I'll just try not to think of that for a bit.

Hopefully it "stops"

-Alee

I fear its only a matter of time before ISIS or Terrorists send groups there to become infected and spread the love around the globe.

a reply to: NerdGoddess

Nah, it may be able to spread similar to a cold or flu, but unlike those, we have a means to treating this.

I don't understand why quarantine isn't used more often? Particularly in this case? It just seems like we've been lucky so far is all...

originally posted by: kosmicjack
I don't understand why quarantine isn't used more often? Particularly in this case? It just seems like we've been lucky so far is all...

Are you kidding?! They have rights you know ...

No one should have to restrict their movements just for the health and well-being of the rest of us. How selfish are we to want that?

Captain Trips is what I think of whenever these threads pop up . . .

a reply to: ketsuko

TextUntreated pneumonic plague has a mortality of nearly 100%.[3] Some hypothesize that the pneumonic version of the plague was mainly responsible for the Black Death that resulted in approximately 50 million deaths in the 1300s

But

"The risk of international spread is low, because generally, people with plague are too sick to travel," Ndiaye told CNN in a previous report. She explained WHO is working closely with Madagascar's airport authorities to ensure control measures -- such as temperature checks and medical teams -- are in place at airports and ports to prevent the spread of infection outside the country.

I wonder what PPE this one needs

a reply to: Baddogma

There hasn't been a major outbreak because like Ebola, people are only infectious when they're really ill (basically coughing blood and dying), so they are way too ill to get on a plane. In the first couple of days people are less infectious, you also have to be pretty close to someone, in this paper it details cases of people who avoided the disease by facing away from someone but still in the same bed.

academic.oup.com...

Patients in the early stage of pneumonic plague (approximately the first 20–24 h) apparently pose little risk [9]. This is likely because of the low counts of bacteria in their respiratory secretions and the general absence of coughing. Patients in the final stages of disease who cough sputum with much visible blood and/or pus pose the highest risk

Spread[edit] Pneumonic plague can be caused in two ways: primary, which results from the inhalation of aerosolised plague bacteria, or secondary, when septicaemic plague spreads into lung tissue from the bloodstream. Pneumonic plague is not exclusively vector-borne like bubonic plague; instead it can be spread from person to person. There have been cases of pneumonic plague resulting from the dissection or handling of contaminated animal tissue. This is one type of the plague formerly known as the Black Death.[6]

Treatment[edit] Pneumonic plague is a very aggressive infection requiring early treatment. Antibiotics must be given within 24 hours of first symptoms to reduce the risk of death.[5] Streptomycin, gentamicin, tetracyclines and chloramphenicol are all effective against pneumonic plague. Antibiotic treatment for seven days will protect people who have had direct, close contact with infected patients. Wearing a close-fitting surgical mask also protects against infection.[5] The mortality rate from untreated pneumonic plague approaches 100%