The Deadly Bubonic Plague essays

The Deadly Bubonic Plague essays The bubonic plague got its name because of the symptoms of the disease. Bubonic plague causes very painful, swollen lymph nodes called buboes. These swollen lymph nodes are mostly found first in the groin area, which is "boubon" in Latin. The disease became associated with the term "plague" because of the large amount of deaths through history. In medieval times, the plague was also known as the "Black Death" because the dried blood under the skin turns black. The plague can infect pretty much anyone. If you go around someone who's infected, you can get it. If you hang around rats and fleas a lot, you might get the disease. And if you work in a lab with diseases and you ingest a sample of the bacterium, you'll probably get it. If you travel a lot to countries with infected people and you don't take the proper precautions, you might get it. There are many ways to get the bubonic plague, but with modern technology, it can be prevented. But, if by some freak accident, you do get the plague, it can be easily treated. The plague is not age, gender, or race specific. An old, black woman could get it as could a newborn white boy. When the bacterium, Yersinia pestis, enters the bloodstream, it travels to the liver, spleen, kidneys, lungs, and brain. The incubation period is usually two to six days after exposure. Some early symptoms include shivering, vomiting, headache, giddiness, intolerance to light, back and limb pain, and a white coating on the tongue. Eventually, pain occurs in places that contain lymph nodes, including the groin, armpit, and neck. Later, there is painful swelling of the lymph nodes called "boboes", hard lumps that appear in the inner thigh, neck, and armpit. Blood vessels then break, causing internal bleeding. Soon, the dried blood begins to turn black. If it goes untreated, plague mortality can be up to 75%. Once a person is infected and recovers, they become immune. The bubonic plague is caused by the bacterium...