US: Pet cat may be responsible for first bubonic plague case in Oregon after nearly a decade

Local health officials believe that the unidentified resident of the US state of Oregon who caught the bubonic plague may have gotten it from their pet cat. In a statement, addressing the state’s first confirmed case of the rare bacteria since 2015, the health officials also said that since it was identified and treated in the earlier stages it poses “little risk to the community.”

About the case

The case emerged in Deschutes County, Oregon where officials said that an unnamed person probably caught the disease from their pet cat which was displaying symptoms of the disease.

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“All close contacts of the resident and their pet have been contacted and provided medication to prevent illness,” said Dr Richard Fawcett, Deschutes County health officer, in a statement.

The disease was responsible for the Black Death, a bubonic plague, which struck Europe and Asia in the mid-1300s.

It led to millions of deaths and wiped out almost one-third of the European continent’s population in the span of five years or so. However, today, the cases have become much rarer.

“Fortunately, this case was identified and treated in the earlier stages of the disease, posing little risk to the community. No additional cases of plague have emerged during the communicable disease investigation,” said Deschutes County, in a statement.

About the bubonic plague

The symptoms of plague in humans typically begin two to eight days after exposure to an infected animal or flea. The disease spreads to humans or animals through a bite from an infected flea or by coming in contact with an animal that has been infected by the disease.

The disease is carried by common animals like squirrels, chipmunks, and mice but other rodents can also carry the disease. The symptoms of the plague in humans include fever, nausea, weakness, muscle aches, and/or visibly swollen lymph nodes called buboes.

The disease can progress into a septicemic plague which is a bloodstream infection and/or a pneumonic plague (lung infection), if not diagnosed early. These forms of plague are more severe and difficult to treat.

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the country witnesses at least seven human plague cases every year, primarily in rural Southwest and Northwest areas.

(With inputs from agencies)