Modern outbreaks
Since 2002, the World Health Organization (WHO) has reported seven plague outbreaks, though some may go unreported because they often happen in remote areas. Between 1998 and 2009, nearly 24,000 cases have been reported, including about 2,000 deaths, in Africa, Asia, the Americas, and Eastern Europe. Ninety-eight percent of the worlds cases occur in Africa. Democratic Republic of the Congo
Two outbreaks occurred in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2005 and 2006. The outbreak in 2005 was only detected by looking back at blood samples. India
In September 1994, India experienced an outbreak of plague that killed 50 and caused travel to New Delhi by air to be suspended until the outbreak was brought under control. The outbreak was feared to be much worse because the plague superficially resembles other common diseases such as influenza and bronchitis; over 200 people that had been quarantined were released when they did not test positive for the plague. All but two of the deaths occurred around the city of Surat. China
A major outbreak of the pneumonic plague occurred in Manchuria from 1910 to 1911, in what became known as the Manchurian plague, killing around 60,000 people. The Qing court dispatched Wu Lien-teh, a doctor educated at Cambridge University, to oversee disease control and treatment efforts. He made the novel observation that the disease was transmitted by air, and developed prototypical respirators to help prevent its spread.
Pneumonic plague is a severe lung infection caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Symptoms include fever, headache, shortness of breath, chest pain, and coughing. They typically start about three to seven days after exposure. It is one of three forms of plague, the other two being septicemic plague and bubonic plague.The pneumonic form may occur following an initial bubonic or septicemic plague infection. It may also result from breathing in airborne droplets from another person or animal infected with pneumonic plague. The difference between the forms of plague is the location of infection; in pneumonic plague the infection is in the lungs, in bubonic plague the lymph nodes, and in septicemic plague within the blood. Diagnosis is by testing the blood, sputum, or fluid from a lymph node.While vaccines are being developed, in most countries they are not yet commercially available. Prevention is by avoiding contact with infected rodents, people, or cats. It is recommended that those infected be isolated from others. Treatment of pneumonic plague is with antibiotics.Plague is present among rodents in Africa, the Americas, and Asia. Pneumonic plague is more serious and less common than bubonic plague. The total reported number of cases of all types of plague in 2013 was 783. Left untreated, pneumonic plague is nearly always fatal. Some hypothesize that the pneumonic version of the plague was mainly responsible for the Black Death that resulted in approximately 75 - 200 million deaths in the 1300s.