Users Online Now: 415 (Who's On?)		Visitors Today: 27,255
Pageviews Today: 64,755	Threads Today: 100	Posts Today: 1,424
03:16 AM

News

Back to Forum

Post New Thread

View Favorites

Pneumonic Plague in China

RSS

digger
User ID: 757124
11/4/2009 10:36 PM
Report abusive post

Pneumonic Plague in China

Quote

Pneumonic plague reported in remote western China

Three deaths and several illnesses are attributed to the disease. Health officials close access to Ziketan, a town of 10,000 in Qinghai province that is mostly populated by Tibetans.

By Barbara Demick and Joshua Frank August 04, 2009

Reporting from Beijing — Chinese health officials have cordoned off a remote western town after three deaths caused by the rare but deadly pneumonic plague.

The victims all lived in Ziketan, a town of 10,000 in Qinghai province that is mostly populated by Tibetans.

The first victim was a 32-year-old herdsman who died Thursday, four days after falling ill with a fever and cough. State radio reported that the man contracted the illness from his dog, which apparently was infected after being bitten by a flea. The herdsman's 37-year-old neighbor died Sunday and a 64-year-old man died today.

Another nine people were reported to be ill or under observation, one of them in critical condition, at the Tibetan Hospital of Xinghai county.

"Experts continue to carry out disinfecting and pest control work and are tracing people in contact with victims for quarantine purposes," the New China News Agency reported today.

Pneumonic plague is the even deadlier relative of the notorious bubonic plague, which killed millions in Europe in the Middle Ages. Spread person to person through the air, it usually kills all its victims unless they are treated with antibiotics.

In recent years, there have been sporadic outbreaks of the pneumonic plague, most of them in Africa. The few cases in China have been mostly in Tibetan areas in the west.

"In the 1980s, there were a series of plagues in Tibet, but recently not so many," said Tseten Dargye, a physician in Dawu, another Tibetan town in Qinghai province. He said the disease was spread by ticks living on marmots, which are indigenous to the mountainous Tibetan region.

Zhang Changmin, a driver from Qinghai, said that all roads in and out of Ziketan had been closed off since last week to prevent the spread of the disease.

So far the disease does not appear to be causing the panic brought on by the far less deadly swine flu, the threat of which has prompted Chinese authorities to put thousands of people into quarantine, among them U.S. tourists.

Vivian Tan, spokeswoman for the World Health Organization in China, said today that Ziketan's remote location and the low population density reduces the threat of the disease spreading.

"At this point I don't think there's a reason to be alarmed," she said. "Authorities seem to have taken the right measures."

According to Tan, this is the first time the Chinese government has officially notified the WHO of cases of pneumonic plague. But she noted there have been sporadic reports of the disease in the country before.

There had been two other cases in Qinghai in recent years, once in 2001 and again in 2004. Last year, pneumonic plague killed a couple in Tibet, according to the Ministry of Health.

[link to articles.latimes.com]

Anonymous Coward
User ID: 802888
11/4/2009 10:38 PM

Re: Pneumonic Plague in China	Quote
Already posted on GLP this month and back in August.

Anonymous Coward
User ID: 757124 (OP)
11/4/2009 10:40 PM

Re: Pneumonic Plague in China	Quote
Already posted on GLP this month and back in August. Quoting: Anonymous Coward 802888 link? I want to see the responses. :)

Anonymous Coward
User ID: 757124 (OP)
11/4/2009 10:41 PM

Re: Pneumonic Plague in China	Quote
[link to www.godlikeproductions.com] Nevermind. Always nice to connect the dots though.

Anonymous Coward
User ID: 802888
11/4/2009 10:43 PM

Re: Pneumonic Plague in China	Quote
[link to www.godlikeproductions.com] Nevermind. Always nice to connect the dots though. Quoting: Anonymous Coward 757124 No prob. Which is what the other poster said who posted this a few days ago. :)

Anonymous Coward
User ID: 757124 (OP)
11/4/2009 10:46 PM

Re: Pneumonic Plague in China	Quote
[link to www.godlikeproductions.com] Nevermind. Always nice to connect the dots though. No prob. Which is what the other poster said who posted this a few days ago. :) Quoting: Anonymous Coward 802888 I didn't find his post. Just that one. Hrm.

anonymous
User ID: 810079
11/4/2009 11:01 PM

Re: Pneumonic Plague in China

Quote

good article and helps us see biggerpicture. the people may have some antibodies in thier system since europe was hit ard with various deseases over time . Ukraine is eastern europe i think . that part of the world has had lots of illness . modern meds were notavaiable to them in the old days.. maybe they can survive it with a built in antibody, that will save them from death, from pnuemonic plague, if that is, what they even have . . oh well.

anonymous
User ID: 810079
11/4/2009 11:07 PM

Re: Pneumonic Plague in China

Quote

Quoting: anonymous 810079

china last outbreak in a tiny region was last summer i think of pnuemonic plague ..

Back to Forum

Post New Thread

View Favorites

Disclaimer:
This website exists for entertainment purposes only. The reader is responsible for discerning the validity, factuality or implications of information posted here, be it fictional or based on real events. Moderators on this forum make every effort to review the material posted on this site however, it is not realistically possible for our small staff to manually review each and every one of the more than 10,000 posts GodlikeProductions gets on a daily basis.

The content of post on this site, including but not limited to links to other web sites, are the expressed opinion of the original poster and are in no way representative of or endorsed by the owners or administration of this website. The posts on this website are the opinion of the specific author and are not statements of advice, opinion, or factual information on behalf of the owner or administration of GodlikeProductions. This site may contain adult content and if you feel you might be offended by such content, you should log off immediately.

Not all posts on this website are intended as truthful or factual assertion by their authors. Some users of this website are participating in internet role playing, with or without the use of an avatar. NO post on this website should be considered factual information on face value alone. Users are encouraged to USE DISCERNMENT and do their own follow up research while reading and posting on this website. Godlikeproductions.com reserves the right to make changes to, corrections and/or remove entirely at any time posts made on this website without notice. In addition, Godlikeproductions.com disclaims any and all liability for damages incurred directly or indirectly as a result of a post on this website.

This site is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied. You should not assume that this site is error-free or that it will be suitable for the particular purpose which you have in mind when using it. In no event shall Godlikeproductions.com be liable for any special, incidental, indirect or consequential damages of any kind, or any damages whatsoever, including, without limitation, those resulting from loss of use, data or profits, whether or not advised of the possibility of damage, and on any theory of liability, arising out of or in connection with the use or performance of this site or other documents which are referenced by or linked to this site.

Some events depicted in certain posting and threads on this website may be fictitious and any similarity to any person living or dead is merely coincidental. Some other articles may be based on actual events but which in certain cases incidents, characters and timelines have been changed for dramatic purposes. Certain characters may be composites, or entirely fictitious.

We do not discriminate against the mentally ill!

Fair Use Notice:
This site may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Users may make such material available in an effort to advance awareness and understanding of issues relating to civil rights, economics, individual rights, international affairs, liberty, science & technology, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C.Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
For more information please visit:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml

Please be aware any communications sent complaining about a post on this website may be posted publicly at the discretion of the administration.

This Disclaimer is subject to change at anytime.

Mail Webmaster with questions or comments about this site.

Privacy Policy - Terms Of Use

Copyright 1999-2009 © GodLikeProductions.com

Page generated in 0.005s (5 queries)