Man in New Mexico dies from the PLAGUE in America’s first fatal case in years – experts explain why the region is a hotspot

A man in New Mexico last week became the first American in years to die from the plague, health officials announced.

The unnamed patient was from Lincoln County, just south of Albuquerque, but no other details about him have been released, including his age or health status.

The New Mexico Department of Health said it was conducting track-and-trace methods to see if anyone else had been infected.

He is the first person in America to die from the plague since 2020 – a disease that wiped out half of Europe’s population in the 14th century.

It is unclear how the man contracted the disease, although the disease is typically transmitted to humans through flea or rodent bites, as well as through exposure to other dead animals.

The case comes a month after an unidentified Oregon resident fell ill with the plague, which officials say was contracted from their cat.

The bubonic plague was once a major killer and now infects fewer than 10 Americans a year, according to the CDC. However, the disease has become extremely rare thanks to improved hygiene and innovations of modern medicine such as antibiotics.

Most occur in the Four Corners region of the U.S. — New Mexico, Utah, Colorado and Arizona — because the area has a high concentration of rodents due to its favorable climate, experts say.

In bubonic plague, the most common type, the infection spreads to immune glands called lymph nodes, causing them to become swollen and painful. These can develop into open sores.

Symptoms usually develop within two to eight days and include fever, headache, chills and weakness.

The CDC estimates that 80 percent of plague cases in the US were bubonic plague.

If the infection is not properly treated with antibiotics, it can spread to other parts of the body.

For example, pneumonic plague occurs when the disease spreads to the lungs.

Symptoms occur in just one to three days and include a rapidly developing pneumonia, characterized by shortness of breath, chest pain, coughing, and bloody or watery mucus.

Over time, this can lead to respiratory failure.

And with blood poisoning, the infection spreads to the blood.

Patients typically develop fever, chills, extreme weakness, abdominal pain, shock, and bleeding into the skin and other organs. Blood poisoning is almost always fatal.

In the 13th century, the bubonic plague spread rapidly across Europe, wiping out 30 to 50 percent of the population in just seven years.

However, today it is extremely rare. According to the CDC, approximately seven cases of human plague are reported each year.

Although it can occur at any age, the CDC says that 50 percent of cases occur in people between the ages of 12 and 45.

Additionally, the risk is slightly higher in men, which the agency said could be due to men engaging in more outdoor activities.

Dr. Robert Bollinger, a professor of infectious diseases at Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health, said USA TODAY: ‘It is not unusual for an isolated case of bubonic plague to occur.’

“It’s serious when it happens, but it’s treatable if you catch it early enough.”

Dr. Bollinger estimated that 80 percent of plague cases occur in the Four Corners of the U.S. — New Mexico, Utah, Colorado and Arizona — because the area has a high concentration of rodents.

The New Mexico Department of Health estimates that 50 percent of cases come from that state alone.

The plague was last reported in New Mexico in 2021.

In 2020, four cases – one fatal – were reported in three New Mexico counties: Santa Fe, Torrance and Rio Arriba.

And in 2017, two women and one man contracted the disease. They all survived.

According to the New Mexico Department of Health, the rock squirrel flea – Oropsylla montana – most commonly harbors plague in the state.

‘Plague occurs in a cyclical nature for reasons that are not yet fully understood, but are likely related to favorable weather (above average rainfall and moderate temperatures), leading to greater food abundance for rodents, causing larger rodent populations and an increased risk of diseases are supported,” the researchers said. agency states.

Fleas can also survive better under these conditions.

In the Oregon case last month, Dr. Richard Fawcett, a health official for Deschutes County — where the patient lived — said the person’s cat was very sick and showing symptoms.

The animal had an oozing abscess and the owner’s infection likely started in a lymph node but had quickly developed and infected the bloodstream. The patient was given antibiotics and responded ‘well’ to treatment.

It was the first case of bubonic plague in Oregon since a 16-year-old contracted the disease in 2015.

The teen became ill after being bitten by an infected flea while on a hunting trip near Heppner, Morrow County.

There have been eight cases in the state over the past two decades, none of which resulted in deaths.

In 2012, an Oregon man lost his fingers and toes to the plague. He also contracted the disease from his cat after trying to remove a mouse from his cat’s throat.

To prevent plague, the CDC recommends reducing the risk of rodents taking up residence in your home or workplace. In addition, wear gloves when handling or skinning potentially infected animals, use a repellent if you think you have been exposed to fleas, and keep fleas away from your pets.

Dr. New Mexico Public Health Veterinarian Erin Phipps said, “We extend our deepest condolences to the family of the Lincoln County man who succumbed to the plague.”

“This tragic incident serves as a stark reminder of the threat posed by this age-old disease and highlights the need for greater community awareness and proactive measures to prevent its spread.”