Suspected Plague Case in Russia

 Why in News?

Nearly 200 people were placed under medical observation in Siberia’s Irkutsk region following the death of a laboratory worker from suspected pneumonic plague, according to The Moscow Times. The incident has drawn attention to plague, a serious infectious disease caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis.

About Plague

Plague is a zoonotic disease caused by Yersinia pestis, a bacterium commonly found in small mammals and their fleas. Symptoms generally develop within one to seven days after infection.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), plague is transmitted through the bite of infected fleas, direct contact with infected tissues, and inhalation of infected respiratory particles. It has three major clinical forms: bubonic, septicaemic and pneumonic plague.

Bubonic plague is the most common form and is characterised by painful, swollen lymph nodes known as buboes. Septicaemic plague occurs when the infection enters the bloodstream, while pneumonic plague affects the lungs and can spread between people through infectious respiratory particles. Pneumonic plague is particularly severe and requires prompt treatment.

Three Major Plague Pandemics in History

1. Plague of Justinian (541–750 CE): The first major plague pandemic is believed to have originated in Africa or Central Asia and spread through trade and shipping routes into the Mediterranean region. It severely affected Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, causing extensive mortality and economic disruption. Estimates of deaths across its successive waves range widely, from approximately 25 million to 100 million.

2. Black Death (1347–1353): The second pandemic devastated Europe, killing an estimated half of its population. Research published in 2022 by scientists associated with Germany’s Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology suggested an origin near Lake Issyk-Kul in present-day Kyrgyzstan. The pandemic caused severe labour shortages, social upheaval and long-term changes in Europe’s economic and social structures.

3. Third Plague Pandemic (from 1855): This pandemic began in Yunnan province in southwestern China and spread globally, aided by maritime trade and infected rats and fleas. It caused more than 15 million deaths, with the heaviest losses in India and China. By the mid-20th century, the pandemic had largely subsided, although plague continued to occur in some regions.

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