PLAGUE Disease Introduction

PLAGUE The acute fever that occurs with symptoms like acute toxicity, enlargement of lymph glands, body ache etc. is called glandular fever. It is an acute infectious fever, which sometimes attacks in the form of an epidemic and innumerable people suffer from it. The main cause of this disease is called plague bacillus (Bacillus pestis-B. Pestis). Its carrier is a flea. It is known by the names of plague, glandular fever, plague, black death etc. Plague is such a contagious disease, due to the outbreak of which even in ancient times, villages and districts were engulfed in the jaws of time. Due to this, such diseases have been named Janpadodhwans in the texts of Ayurveda. It is also known as urban epidemic, because the population in cities is dense, in which rats and humans live very close. That is why the outbreak of plague is more in cities.

PLAGUE This is a terrible infectious disease

When a rat dies, the germs from its body go to other rats. This sequence continues. When this flea bites a human body, this disease spreads among humans. This disease spreads more in the last days of winter than in summer. When it spreads in the form of an epidemic, millions of people become its victims.Problem of Plague in India From 1888 to 1908, 5 lakh people used to die every year from plague. But after that its effect reduced somewhat and by 1904 its outbreak reduced considerably. The use of DDT for malaria also reduced the plague and in 1959, Uttar Pradesh, which was then considered the home of plague, was declared plague-free and in 1960, Madhya Pradesh was declared plague-free for the first time in India in 1967. But even then the plague was not completely eradicated, because rat fleas, which are a wonderful link between rats and humans, can be controlled by humans through spraying etc. But still somewhere the germs of plague remain in wild rats, which man has not been able to stop till date.

Geographical distribution OF PLAGUE

This disease is found in animals all over the world except the continent of Australia. In humans, this disease is endemic in Asia, Africa and South America. In India, this disease is endemic in some parts of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.

According to an estimate, 5 lakh people died due to the plague that spread in India between 1898 and 1908. Although, there was an outbreak of plague in many countries of the world (29 countries) between 1950 and 1966. During this time, about 45 thousand people were affected by it. But in India, after 1967, the plague ceased to exist. Actually, in view of the increasing outbreak of malaria, the Indian government had launched a ‘Malaria Eradication’ campaign, in which DDT was widely used to kill mosquitoes. In this campaign, malaria could not be eradicated as expected, but the germs of plague were eliminated, from this time the malaria eradication campaign indirectly eradicated the plague.

■ Because plague germs grow in soil where there is moisture. These germs have been named ‘Percinia pestis’ in modern medical science. These extremely minute germs, which can be seen through a microscope, are shaped like a safety pin. It is said that They attack wild rats first. This disease spreads from wild rats to urban rats, due to which rats start dying. Rats have fleas on their bodies which leave the body of the rat when it dies. Then they fly and attack humans to satiate their hunger. Since these fleas can fly only up to a height of 1½ to 2 feet, they bite on human feet. During this, the plague germs found in its mouth enter the human body and reach the body through the lymph vessels. These germs also enter the body through the saliva, breath and the upper layer of the eyes of a plague-stricken person. Therefore, it is considered a highly contagious disease. The plague caused by flea bites is called bubonic. The plague that spreads due to the particles of phlegm, blood, cough etc. in the air is called pneumonic and when both the types of plague mentioned above have a complete effect on humans, it is called septicemic. However, sometimes the patient directly suffers from septicemia.

Spread-

This disease can be transmitted from domestic rats to humans in the following ways-

1. The flea (Fica) named Genopsilla conopsis which sucks, then transmits the germs into the blood. After biting the rats, when the human blood
2. When a rat bites a human.
3. Apart from this, this disease can also be transmitted by touching contaminated objects.

This disease develops gradually after the rains and assumes a fairly severe form from winter to spring. The growth of bacteria takes place in moist water, not in dry and rough water. Their spread is more in grain markets or where rats are more prevalent or in unlit houses with filth and dust. In many places, its attack continues regularly for a year. During an epidemic, it can be predicted if there is a connection between high fever and enlargement of lymph glands.

Symptoms of the disease High fever develops 2-4 days after the plague germs reach the human. In which one feels cold too. Apart from this, headache, vomiting, increased heartbeat, fatigue and lethargy are its other symptoms. After this, glands appear in the body, which cause pain and swelling. If the germs reach the windpipe, then there can be cough, difficulty in breathing, blood in the sputum in the chest. Pain and

Types of plague- As mentioned above, there are three types of plague. Their symptoms are seen as follows-

1. Bubonic plague- In this, painful glands appear in the neck, armpits or thighs. There is a fever of 102° F to 104° F or more along with headache, shivers, dizziness or vomiting and diarrhea. The glands appear after two-three days. The pulse rate becomes 100-120. The heart rate becomes weak. A state of delirium or coma occurs. Sometimes pus forms in the gland (usually on the seventh or eighth day). In this, first of all, due to the bite of a bug, glands appear in the armpits on both sides of the legs and on the neck and then fever and being restless are its first symptoms.

Apart from this, there is stiffness in the body, tiredness, nervousness and pain in the muscles. In short, the patient has symptoms of alcoholism in addition to fever. In most of the patients, the primary gland appears in the chest only. Due to pain, the patient keeps the leg bent and in case of gland in the orbit, the hand is kept outstretched. In case of mild form, the fever starts subsiding gradually from the 5th day. The fever is of continuous form.

2. Pneumonia Plague- In the beginning, glands appear and later pneumonia develops. Breathing becomes light and fast. In the beginning, the patient starts suffering from pneumonia, high fever, cough. Plain or blood-mixed phlegm starts coming out. Symptoms include rashes, red coloured spots on the body, swelling and pain in the nodes, bloody diarrhoea, restlessness and delirium. After restlessness and delirium, the patient dies within 3 days. When the glands burst inside,
3. Rheumatic fever/plague

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The spores burst and enter the blood and then spread to the respiratory cells. This is the second symptom. If this person coughs or sneezes in front of another healthy person, then this second symptom appears directly in that healthy person. In this disease, fever with chills and blood and phlegm come with mucus and there is a lot of difficulty in breathing. The person dies due to not being able to breathe.

In this type, the pulse and breathing rate become very fast (sometimes up to 70-80 per minute). The phlegm is thin, frothy, blood green in color in large quantities, due to which the patient keeps spitting here and there due to semi-consciousness. Sometimes the glands on the skin also become swollen. The infection of this plague spreads very fast and also engulfs another person immediately.

. Septicemic plague – It is very fatal. In this, the patient gets high fever, unconsciousness and delirium. Sometimes the patient dies within 24 hours.

After bubonic plague or independently, when the germs spread throughout the body, the defect occurs. In this, there are severe symptoms like severe headache, body ache, cold fever with vomiting, rapid breathing, enlarged lymph nodes of the whole body, spleen enlargement, bleeding in various organs, severe restlessness, delirium, depression, fainting, panic, etc.

Due to this, the patient usually dies on the third or fourth day. If the patient survives for 6-7 days, the initial gland swells and there is hope of survival as the symptoms become mild. Plague bacillus is found in large numbers in the blood test.

In this condition, the condition of the patient has deteriorated a lot. The germs of plague have spread throughout his body. This is the last stage of plague.

The World Health Organization has divided plague into two types in 1970-

1. Wild or Sylvatic Plague This disease is prevalent in nature and does not pose any threat to humans.
2. Domestic Plague This is closely associated with humans and the rats living with them. It is of three types-

(1) Bubonic plague

(ii) Pneumonic plague

(iii) Septicemic.