The plague epidemics of the past are a reminder of the social as well as medical impact of epidemics. Using techniques such as genome mapping, scientists have been able to identify the exact strains of bubonic plague that they encounter and their origins, making it easier to track the spread of epidemics. Genetic evidence of the Yersinia pestis bacterium in several plague burial grounds from 1348–1590, has also confirmed that the Black Death was, in most cases, bubonic plague. In 2017 the deadliest outbreak in modern times killed 170 people and infected thousands on the island. But drug resistant forms of the bacteria were identified on the island of Madagascar in 1995. With modern antibiotics the mortality rate has fallen from over 60% to 11%. A few small pockets of infection remain around the world, particularly in central Asia where the disease is endemic. The fleas also infested clothing and could be carried to other locations in that way.īy the 1930s plague epidemics were a thing of the past. When the rats died the fleas moved onto human hosts. Known as house rats or ship rats, black rats liked to live in close proximity to humans. The fleas were transported around the world overland and on ships by black rats. In 1898 Paul Louis Somond established the mechanism for transmission was via fleas, which transferred bacteria from infected hosts to the non-infected through their bites. ![]() French-Swiss bacteriologist Alexandre Yersin isolated the bacterium that caused the disease in 1897, and it was named Yersinia pestis after him. From Hong Kong it entered the ports of India, where at least 12 million people died over 20 years.īy the end of the 1800s, developments in bacteriology and infection control meant that medical researchers were able to observe and investigate the disease in detail for the first time.Ī team of European scientists was sent to colonial Hong Kong in the 1890s to study the epidemic. Between 18 there were over 24,000 cases in Hong Kong. The third pandemic wave began in Southern China in 1865, spreading south and west. Surgical masks since then were also made from woven cloth – better than nothing, but not as good as the now-coveted N95 mask, molded (not woven) out of synthetic fibers which filter out more of the virus.Outbreaks of plague continued in Asia throughout the 1800s. Those Chinese doctors in Manchuria made theirs out of bandages. The mask has come a long way, not just in terms of social acceptability, but technically. In Hollywood's version of the Old West, masks were for bad guys. The other attitude may come from the movies. Studies show men are less likely to wear facemasks than women. The non-mask-wearer-in-chief may be living out two cultural fantasies. These days, the divide is more left/right than East/West. One of these people is not paying attention to CDC recommendations. ![]() During the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918-19, San Francisco had a mask-wearing public ordinance, where people were actually fined $5 if they were caught by policemen not wearing a mask in public. ![]() The mask has become commonplace in Asian cities during flu season. I suppose there could have been an element of, 'Who is this sort of, you know, presumptuous young Chinese doctor to tell me? I know better!' Right?"Īnd that East/West divide has endured. "He didn't wear the mask, he dismissed it. "The French doctor who did not wear the mask?" asked Phillips. "Long story short, they didn't catch bubonic plague, whereas the French doctor he worked with did – and died as a result," Honigsbaum said.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |