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Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 18e
| Part 8. Infectious Diseases > Section 6. Diseases Caused by Gram-Negative Bacteria > |
Chapter 159. Plague and Other Yersinia Infections
Sections: Plague and Other Yersinia Infections: Introduction, Further Readings.
Topics Discussed: yersinia infections.
Excerpt:"Plague is a systemic zoonosis caused by Yersinia pestis. It predominantly affects small rodents in rural areas of Africa, Asia, and the Americas and is usually transmitted to humans by an arthropod vector (the flea). Less often, infection follows contact with animal tissues or respiratory droplets. Plague is an acute febrile illness that is treatable with antimicrobial agents, but mortality rates among untreated patients are high. Patients can present with the bubonic, septicemic, or pneumonic form of the disease. Although there is concern among the general public about epidemic spread of plague by the respiratory route, this is not the usual route of plague transmission, and established infection-control measures for respiratory plague exist. However, the fatalities associated with plague and the capacity for infection via the respiratory tract mean that Y. pestis fits the profile of a potential agent of bioterrorism. Consequently, measures have been taken to restrict access to the organism, including legislation affecting diagnostic and research procedures in some countries (e.g., the United States).After an incubation period of 2–6 days, the onset of bubonic plague is sudden and is characterized by fever (>38°C), malaise, myalgia, dizziness,..."
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