Chinese health authorities have announced the triggering of a level 3 alert after the discovery of a case of bubonic plague in the autonomous region of Inner Mongolia, in northern China.
- A shepherd in Bayun Nur was infected with the Black Death.
- Worried, China has issued a level 3 alert to ban the hunting and consumption of marmots, known to be vectors of the mythical pathology.
- The bubonic plague, or Black Death, pandemic was the deadliest in human history.
A shepherd in Bayun Nur, a city in China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, has been infected with the Black Death. Worried, the local authorities launched a health alert.
The patient would have been contaminated by eating a sick marmot, according to the first scientific hypotheses. Quarantined, the shepherd recovered quickly. In the meantime, China has issued a level 3 alert to ban the hunting and consumption of marmots, which are known to be carriers of the disease. Local belief is that eating this small mammal, eaten raw, maintains good health. Two people died from this custom last year in a nearby area.
Epidemic risk
“Currently, there is a risk of a plague epidemic. The local population must be aware of this and quickly report any abnormal health situation.reports the China Daily.
The bubonic plague, or Black Death, pandemic was the deadliest in human history. Around 1350, the disease caused approximately 50 million deaths in a few years, including 25 million on the European continent, ie half the population of the time.
Caused by bacteria Yersinia pestis, bubonic plague initially causes fever, headache, and flu-like vomiting. Untreated, 90% of those affected die. Today, common antibiotics, such as streptomycin and gentamycin, quickly rid the body of the bacteria Yersinia pestis.
1,000 to 2,000 cases of Black Death each year
An average of 1,000 to 2,000 cases of the Black Death are reported each year worldwide. Very little present in Western countries, the disease is particularly prevalent in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar and Peru.
“One of the explanations could be the reduced vigilance of health authorities over the years. As long as a country knows that it is infected with the plague, many surveillance measures are put in place and antibiotic treatments are put in place. With these precautions, the epidemic does not take hold. But as cases become rare, some countries are letting their guard down.”advances Jean-François Lemoine, medical journalist and founder of Why doctor.
“The last major epidemic in France dates from three centuries ago! Between 1720 and 1723, an epidemic of plague in Marseilles and its region caused nearly 120,000 deaths out of the 400,000 inhabitants that the region had at that time.concludes our expert, who nevertheless ensures that the multiplication of rats in Paris could become a public health problem.
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