Oregon has reported a case of the bubonic plague, with a cat being the likely cause.
Health officials in Deschutes County stated that a resident was diagnosed with the plague, and it is believed that they were infected by their cat, marking the state’s first human case in eight years.
Dr. Richard Fawcett, the Deschutes County Health Services Officer, mentioned that all close contacts of the resident and their pet have been provided medication to prevent illness.
The disease is usually spread through a bite from an infected flea or contact with an infected animal. Human to human transmission is rare.
The Oregon case was identified early, and the person was promptly treated. Officials stated that the case does not pose a significant risk to the community, and no other cases have been reported in the state. The last case of the plague in Oregon was reported in 2015, according to health officials.
Though the plague was responsible for killing millions of people in the past, it is now easily treatable with modern antibiotics. However, if not treated quickly, the disease can progress to cause serious illness and death.
Symptoms of the plague usually appear between two to eight days after exposure to an infected animal or flea. They can include fever, nausea, weakness, chills, muscle aches, and visibly swollen lymph nodes called buboes.
In the U.S., plague infections continue to occur in rural parts of the West, particularly in New Mexico, Arizona, and Colorado. The CDC reports that an average of seven human plague cases are reported each year in the U.S., although the number is much higher worldwide.
Deschutes County Health Services recommended several plague-preventing measures, including keeping pets on a leash when outdoors and refraining from feeding wild rodents.