Disease or Syndrome
plague
Subclass of:
Vector Borne Diseases;
Yersinia infections
Etymology:
Latin plaga = a pestilence
Originally, plaga was a wound or sudden stroke, being derived from plangere = to strike.
Originally, plaga was a wound or sudden stroke, being derived from plangere = to strike.
Also called:
Black Death; Bubonic plague; Pneumonic plague
Definitions related to plague:
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A Gram-negative bacterial infection caused by Yersinia pestis. It is usually transmitted to humans from bites of infected rodent fleas. It is manifested as a bubonic, septicemic, or pneumonic plague. In bubonic plague, the lymph nodes adjacent to the site of the skin bite are infected and enlarged. In septicemic plague, the infection spreads directly through the bloodstream. In pneumonic plague, the infection spreads to the lungs either following bubonic plague, or by inhalation of infective droplets. If untreated, it may lead to death.NCI ThesaurusU.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
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An acute infectious disease caused by YERSINIA PESTIS that affects humans, wild rodents, and their ectoparasites. This condition persists due to its firm entrenchment in sylvatic rodent-flea ecosystems throughout the world. Bubonic plague is the most common form.NLM Medical Subject HeadingsU.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
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An infection that is caused by Yersinia pestis, which is usually transmitted to humans from infected rodent fleas. It is manifested as a bubonic (lymph node), pneumonic, or septicemic plague. In bubonic plague, the lymph nodes adjacent to the site of the skin bite are infected and enlarged. In pneumonic plague, the infection spreads to the lungs, either following bubonic plague or by inhalation of infective droplets. The term septicemic plague is used when the primary manifestation is a bloodstream infection.NICHD Pediatric TerminologyU.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
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Plague is an infection caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. The bacteria are found mainly in rats and in the fleas that feed on them. People and other animals can get plague from rat or flea bites. In the past, plague destroyed entire civilizations. Today plague is uncommon, due to better living conditions and antibiotics. There are three forms of plague: Bubonic plague causes the tonsils, adenoids, spleen, and thymus to become inflamed. Symptoms include fever, aches, chills, and tender lymph glands.; In septicemic plague, bacteria multiply in the blood. It causes fever, chills, shock, and bleeding under the skin or other organs.; Pneumonic plague is the most serious form. Bacteria enter the lungs and cause pneumonia. People with the infection can spread this form to others. This type could be a bioterror agent. Lab tests can diagnose plague. Treatment is a strong antibiotic. There is no vaccine.MedlinePlusU.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
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(yersinia pestis disease) Acute infectious disease caused by Yersinia pestis that affects humans, wild rodents, and their ectoparasites; bubonic plague is the most common form.CRISP ThesaurusNational Institutes of Health, 2006
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Plague is an acute, contagious, febrile illness transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected rat flea. Human-to-human transmission is rare except during epidemics of pneumonic plague.WebMD, 2019
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Plague is a serious bacterial infection that's transmitted primarily by fleas. The organism that causes plague, Yersinia pestis, lives in small rodents found most commonly in rural and semirural areas of Africa, Asia and the United States. The organism is transmitted to humans who are bitten by fleas that have fed on infected rodents or...Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
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Plague, infectious disease caused by Yersinia pestis, a bacterium transmitted from rodents to humans by the bite of infected fleas. Plague was the cause of some of the most-devastating epidemics in history. It was the disease behind the Black Death of the 14th century, when as much as one-third of...Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 2020
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