Bubonic+Plague

=//**The Bubonic Plague**//=

====The Bubonic Plague is the most common form of the Plague, a zoonotic disease spread by flea bite to humans. The most common symptoms include a high fever, buboes, and many others. It will result in high death percentages if left untreated correctly. However, today,almost all cases of the Bubonic plague can be treated withought permanant damage.==== ====The Bubonic plague was first recorded in China in the 1330's. This disease was very fatal and managed to wipe out about twenty five million Europeans, almost one thirds of Europe's population. This disease affected many people during and after it's existence and managed to continuously affect their lives for centuries to come. The toll this disease took on the people of Europe can effectively classify this disease as extremely deadly and vicious. Furthermore, this disease still manages to be present in modern society.====

Cause Symptoms Treatments Medieval remedies Death Beginning Short Term and Long Term Effects Aftermath ||
 * __//**Table of Contents**//__
 * Medical:**
 * Historical:**

Cause
The bubonic plague is caused by bacteria known as //yersinea pestis//, common to Africa, Asia, and South America. The Plague is a zoonic disease, meaning it is most commonly carried by animals and can be given to humans. Animals that can carrie the plague include Fleas, Mice, Rats, Fleas, Lice, Prairie dogs, Dogs, Cats, Wood rats, Chipmunks and Squirrels. Humans contract the Bubonic plague most commonly from animal or flea bites, but also from contact with infected tissue, or contact with infected bodily fluids. It is rarely spread from human to human. After y//ersinea pestis//is in the body, it travels to the lymph nodes and begins to multiply. After 2 - 6 days, symptoms emerge.

Reconstructing the plague today: []

Yersinea pestis, the bacteria causing the bubonic plague. http://science.nationalgeographic.com/staticfiles/NGS/Shared/StaticFiles/Science/Images/Content/plague-bacteria-sc3519-lw.jpg

**Symptoms** After an incubation period of 2 - 6 days, symptoms begin. These include Buboes (tender, enlarged lymph nodes. Found in 70 percent of patients), Fever, headache, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and tiny broken blood vessels .Other milder symptoms also appear. Once the y//ersinea pestis//is enters the bloodstream, several new symptoms appear. These include severe headaches, rapid heart rate, delirium, and death. Death is likely within 2 - 6 days. The lungs are also affected in about 10 - 20 percent of Bubonic plague cases. in cases of the bubonic plague where the lungs are affected, the result is the pnuemonic plague. if the lungs begin to have symptoms, the death rate is about 75 percent. In under 10 percent of cases, Meningitis can be a side affect of the plague. A buboe, or swollen lymph node, for which the Bubonic plague is named. http://s2.hubimg.com/u/4304361_f260.jpg

Treatments
Early diagnosis and treatment is key to heal and recover from the bubonic plague, as death can occur as early as 2 - 3 days after contracting the disease. The main treatment is the use of the antibiotics Streptomycin and Gentamycin. Other medicines and treatments to cure and help individual symptoms may also be used. Early treatment and use of antibiotics cures approximately 85 percent of the cases. however, if left untreated, the body will cure the plague 10 - 50 percent of the time.

Medieval Remedies
Without modern medicine, 14th century Europeans were left scrambling for a cure. While none of their cures were very effective, some of them did cure a few cases. These remedies included cutting open the swollen lymph nodes (buboes) and applying tree resin to the cuts, being washed in vinegar and rose water, cutting open veins leading to the heart and applying an ointment to the cuts, eating food less prone to rotting, cleaning the streets and burning the dead bodies to prevent the spread, placing a live hen on the wound and drinking one’s own urine. They also tried wacky and homemade medicines to draw the plague out of the body, such as a glass of ale with eggshells and marigold flowers in it every morning. These attempts to cure the plague were based on very few successful recoveries most likely from the body's own immune system, and not from the actual remedy itself.

Death
The death caused by the black plague is one of the highest of all time. [] This is a graph of the total deaths cause by the black plague compared to WWI and WWII, the swine flu, and the normal flu.

Beginning
The bubonic plague started in Asia, mainly China. Due to the greatness of China’s trade, the disease was able to spread to Europe. It was able to get to Europe through European trade ships heading back to Europe. Once the disease hit Europe, it spread like a wild fire. Due to the great speed at which this disease could infect people, many people died very quickly.

The chaos on the streets of Europe from the eyes of artists https://coursewikis.fas.harvard.edu/aiu18/images/DiePest2.gif

Short Term and Long Term Effects
The deadliness and speed of the disease effectively killed twenty five million people in five years. The disease eventually died down but continued to flare up for centuries to come. The constant fear of death and the sight of people dying had a major toll on the psyches of the European people. They had to constantly be aware of the people around them and worry for their lives. When the death toll was still very high, laborers started to demand higher pay which was refused by landlords. This, in turn, started revolts. In the long term the disease effectively weakened the Church. It sparked doubt in many of the Church’s followers because they were left wondering why God had not answered their prayers for peace and deliverance from the disease. This doubt lost the Church many followers and effectively weakened it. Those who treated the sick, known as plague doctors

http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRBw3AniJsIfSo1zyF8oaIadp3QDjGvf__c7fM02CnSgQ4S7H26cg

Aftermath
The Bubonic plague continuously made changes to the already weak and scared Europe. It managed to raise and lower prices in food. Since there was already famine in Europe, the many deaths created a surplus in food. The disease also caused a great increase in crime. with feudal lords dying from the plague as well as peasants, their serfs were able to leave the manors and search for higher wages, decreasing feudalism. People thought that they were being abandoned by God so they lost the fear of committing crimes. Furthermore, the fast growing education in Europe was slowed. The death of scholars and clergy lost universities teachers and knowledge. Also, there was far less attendance at universities. When education finally regained its rapid growth, its approach to learning had changed from studying the clergy, religious documents, and religious tradition, and gave way to a new era, the Renaissance.

Spread of the disease in europe.

http://library.thinkquest.org/08aug/01073/black-plague-map.jpg

Sources

"The Black Death: Bubonic Plague." //Middle Ages//. WideOpenDoors.net. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. . Coutsoukus, Photius. "Plague." //Table of Contents//. Web. 10 Apr. 2012. .

Schoenstadt, Arthur. "Bubonic Plague Symptoms." //Plague Home Page//. Clinearo, INC, 20 Aug. 2008. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. .

Snell, Melissa. "The Great Mortality, Part 3." //About.com Medieval History//. About.com. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. .

Trueman, Chris. "Cures for the Black Death." //History Learning Site//. Ask.com. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. <http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/cures_for_the_black_death.htm>.