Deadly bubonic plague found in Oregon: Back to the Middle Ages?

New Jersey Newsroom ^ | Saturday, 16 June 2012 11:00 | BOB HOLT

[Olog-hai]

A man has been hospitalized in Oregon who is believed to be suffering from the black plague, a disease that killed about one-third of the population of Europe during the Middle Ages.

The unidentified man in his 50s became ill several days after being bitten when he tried to get a mouse out of the mouth of a stray cat, according to OregonLive.com. The man was listed in critical condition in a Bend hospital on Tuesday.

NZ Herald News reported that the man showed classic symptoms of the plague—swollen lymph nodes in the groin and armpits. But doctors said he followed that by developing abdominal pain and bleeding, symptoms of septicaemic plague.

The stray cat has since died, and its body has been taken by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for testing. The man was bitten on the hand.

His case marks the fifth case of the plague since 1995—the last four having survived. The CDC said the infection is often transmitted through a flea bite, according to CBS News. It is treated by antibiotics and hospitalization. …

[varmintman]

The unidentified man in his 50s became ill several days after being bitten when he tried to get a mouse out of the mouth of a stray cat

There's no such thing as a cure for stupidity...

[Olog-hai]

Sounds like the PETA mentality running out of control, eh? I have a cat that catches mice daily and eats them; he usually leaves the heads on the doorstep, and I have to be careful about how to dispose of them, at least as careful as I am about keeping him free of fleas.

[a fool in paradise]

Only if the media wants to play dumb...

[I still care]

You thought that too? Why would a man take a mouse from a stray? Taking food from a stray animal.

These articles are worded so badly. Came up with my biology kids, and we were wondering which bit him. The cat? The mouse? The flea? This article seems to say the cat.

[Olog-hai]

Cat bites usually result in blood poisoning, and a bad case of such. Plague can be transmitted too, of course. Other articles such as from the Toronto Sun confirm that the man was bitten by the cat.

[BigCinBigD]

Serves him right for trying to deny that poor cat a last meal.

[gigster]

In the picture, the mouse looks pretty healthy, lol.

[SatinDoll]

Bubonic plague did not exist in western America until introduced by ship into San Francisco in the late 19th century.

The Federal Government and the State of California had a window of opportunity to eradicate the disease, as it was isolated on the San Francisco peninsula. They screwed up monumentally.

So today the plague has found a vast reservoir in the rodent and rabbit population throughout the western states.

Pity.

[eyedigress]

This story has rabid moonbat all over it. While I don’t wish the plague on anybody, it is best to leave the natural food chain alone.

[trebb]

There's no such thing as a cure for stupidity...

Yep - hence the adage, "You can make anything fool-proof, you just can't make it damn-fool-proof".

[WKUHilltopper]

“The unidentified man in his 50s became ill several days after being bitten when he tried to get a mouse out of the mouth of a stray cat”

Yeah. That’s exactly what you want to do with an injured or wounded animal. Pick it up. Because they’re all appreciative of your efforts—just like the Disney movies have taught you.

[SIDENET]

The unidentified man in his 50s became ill several days after being bitten when he tried to get a mouse out of the mouth of a stray cat

What a dork.

I'd avoid that guy like the plague.

[ClearCase_guy]

“I don’t want to go on the cart.”

[goodwithagun]

Lol, I’ve always said that if you make something idiot proof they’ll just invent a bigger idiot.

[blueunicorn6]

They take the dead cat to the CDC, and then bite the guy on the hand. I guess this puts an end to the TOM AND JERRY cartoons.

[SunkenCiv]

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[Ditter]

I am still wondering WHY he was trying to get the mouse out of the cats mouth. When something good is happening you should leave things alone.

[Darren McCarty]

Why the hell would someone take any food out of the mouth of an animal? Dumbass.

[LadyDoc]

the plague is found in rodents in the mountain states. If you work on the Navajo or neighboring reservations as a doc, it is one of the diseases you think of when someone has a sore lymph node or a rash and high fever.

Nothing new here: the miracle is that docs recognize it. I’ve never seen a case...