ipl-logo

Pneumonic Plague Research Paper

1000 Words4 Pages

“Ring around the rosie. Pockets full of posies. Ashes, ashes, we all fall down!” We have all sang this song as children playing with our friends. However, there is a morbid story behind this seemingly innocent song. The words refer to an epidemic known as the the Black Plague, which began spread through Europe in the year 1347. With the plague came fear and death. It is estimated that twenty-five million people were killed during the outbreak. The plague was spread by fleas who had fed on animals infected with a bacteria called Yersinia pestis. It is thought that fleas were mostly from black rats and cats, however, the bacteria may also be carried by squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits, and prairie dogs. The bacteria could also be spread by coming …show more content…

This sickness starts out as flu-like symptoms, but quickly become more serious. Those infected would eventually develop large, blue sores called buboes. Buboes can be located near the groin, armpit, neck, or can very rarely be internal. Over time, victims would develop pneumonic plague, which is an advanced form of the bubonic plague. The pneumonic plague affects the lungs and was usually what killed those who contracted the plague. This type of plague is the most infectious and the most deadly. The third and final plague is the septicemic plague. In this form, the bacteria multiplies in the blood, causing gangrene, which is blood clots in the fingers and toes, and shock. The plague has also been associated with meningitis, or swelling of the brain and spinal …show more content…

The Spanish influenza outbreak in 1918 killed about 50 million people. Though it was small in scale compared to the Black Death, but it caused just as much panic. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which causes AIDS, has become an epidemic in recent years. Interestingly enough, there is a possible relation between HIV and the plague. Scientists have found a genetic mutation in people who have ancestors who contracted the plague during the outbreak in the 1440s and survived. This genetic mutation gives people immunity to the HIV virus. Ebola is also a concerning virus. It’s recent outbreak in Africa killed many people and caused other countries to put up travel precautions. Microorganism is not the only threat to our species. Diseases like cancer, which is the mutation of cells in the human body, has also been proven extremely deadly. It seems that the human race’s greatest weakness will always be our

Show More
Related

  • Summary Of The Great Mortality By John Kelly

    1845 Words  | 8 Pages

    Although we still have cases of the plague today, people usually develop flu like symptoms and can be treated. These documented records allow us to see the full effect of the plague without putting lives at risk. Kelly documents that the most common form is transmitted by a fleabite and has an incubation period of two to six days. He describes that the most common symptoms are egg shaped bubos, which are raised knots on the skin. The book describes the bubos as tumor-like such as an aggressive cancer cell and once the tumor is inside of the body it multiplies.

    Read More

  • Explain Why Did The Black Death Kill So Many People In The 14th Century

    249 Words  | 1 Pages

    Why did the Black Death kill so many people in the 14th century? The plague was the most devastating disease in world history. There were three types of the Plague which included the bubonic, septicaemic and the pneumonic plague. Fleas living on rats that came from Asia on a trade ship spread the bubonic plague, the septicaemic plague is created by the entrance of bacteria from their multiplying place into the blood vessels. There are two different forms of pneumonic pest.

    Read More

  • Plague Of Athens Research Paper

    544 Words  | 3 Pages

    Which, was not an uncommon number of deaths for that time period, due to the medical treatment and preventative drugs that where available. What is uncommon is this plague is it affected young men and not just the old or children. There are many different speculations as to what disease the Plague actually was, especially within the last century. Although, none have been proven yet. With the difference of opinion on the

    Read More

  • Bubonic Plague Dbq Essay

    474 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Bubonic Plague (Black Death) came to the eastern Mediterranean along the shipping routs. It reached Italy in spring of 1348. By the time the disease spread between 25% and 50% of Europes population had died (document 1, (Source: EyeWitnesstoHistory.com) the Bubonic Plague was spread because in this time there was not any place to put garbage and wast products like we have today, so they would just leave the trash/wast anywhere and everywhere and the result of this would bring rats and many other animals, and with these animals they had fleas and eventually the fleas would get to the people and the humans would get sick and spread it to everyone. Some symptoms of the Bubonic Plague were large swelling lumps which they called "buboes" sizing

    Read More

  • The Bubonic Plague In Central China

    248 Words  | 1 Pages

    The bubonic plague first broke out in Central China in the 1340's and arrived to Europe by sea in 1347 when trading ships had docked at the Sicilian port of Messina. (This had caused others to get infected by physical interaction, and sharing mucus when coughing, sneezing, etc.) The Black Death soon quickly spread, killing people in weeks, and making this possibly the most major event in history. The Jews had dictated a more sanitary living style, which meant there were less incidents of rats, fleas, and the plague. But meanwhile in other people's minds, they had poisoned the wells or ¨ made a deal with the Devil¨ in order to cause the black death.

    Read More

  • How Did The Bubonic Plague Affect European Culture

    601 Words  | 3 Pages

    Often as a result of overpopulation, pandemics—like swine flu and ebola, for instance—have affected life on Earth for centuries; one of the most well-known, and possibly the most unforgiving epidemics was the Bubonic Plague, also known as the Black Death . Although the first symptoms of the Plague trace back to the Mongol Empire in 1331, the disease first struck Europe in Venice and Genoa during the winter of 1348. In the following years, the Bubonic Plague spread rapidly throughout Europe, killing roughly a third of its population. It is suggested that the rapid spread and extreme severity of the Black Death was partially due to the weakened immune system of the Europeans, which had been caused by the Great Famine, a period of food scarcity that affected Europe from 1315 to 1322. Additionally, the lack of knowledge about the spread of

    Read More

  • Bubonic Plague As Viewed By Christian And Muslim Societies

    1288 Words  | 6 Pages

    The Bubonic Plague as viewed by Christian and Muslim Societies The Bubonic Plague, also known as the Black Death was responsible for wiping out anywhere from thirty to fifty percent of Europe's population between 1300-1400 C.E. This had a large impact on many civilizations during this time era. Due to little knowledge of bacteria, and how diseases spread, different religious groups reacted differently to the plague. The Bubonic Plague began to spread to humans from contact with fleas.

    Read More

  • The Plague: The Water Elf Disease

    1092 Words  | 5 Pages

    During the 1300’s one of the biggest illness was The Black Plague. The Black Plague killed half of the population. Other diseases took many lives also. The Medical field and technology was not good like it is today. Since modern technology, Britain has been plague free for 96 years now.

    Read More

  • The Bubonic Plague In Brazil

    1503 Words  | 7 Pages

    No one is certain as to where the Bubonic plague originated. There are a few theories as to where the disease started. One of the theories is that the Bubonic plague is believed to have started in Central Asia in the fourteenth

    Read More

  • The Great Plague: The Black Death

    731 Words  | 3 Pages

    The reactions from the Christians and the Muslims to the greatly feared disease, known as the Black Death or the Great Plague were different in several ways. The first Plague was documented from 541 to 544 CE. Known as the Plague of Justinian. The Plague came in three different ways: bubonic, pneumonic, and septicemic. With bubonic being the most common.

    Read More

  • Bubonic Plague Dbq Essay

    1198 Words  | 5 Pages

    Treatments for the plague varied widely, and were always unsuccessful. Medical knowledge was lacking during this time period and treatment ranged from blood letting to bathing in urine. Blood letting was an extremely risky procedure that involved severing a vein to try and “bleed” the disease out. When you couple this with the lack of sanitation during this time period, you can only imagine the opportunity for infection. Europe also had problems disposing of the overwhelming number of dead.

    Read More

  • The Black Death In Elizabethan England

    688 Words  | 3 Pages

    By the end of the fourteenth century, the Black Death killed nearly 60% of Europe’s population. First arriving in Europe through sick merchants on Genoese trading ships that docked in Sicily, the plague caused boils, fever, diarrhea, horrible pain, and shortly, death. No one was sure how the Death spread, and this combined with the fast course the disease took and the primitive medical practices of the time allowed for the disease to spread through the continent in devastating time. It only took about twenty-three days from the point of infection for the plague to be fatal (Benedictow). The Black Death spread extensively through Europe, affecting both nobility and peasants.

    Read More

  • Response To The Plague Dbq Essay

    1097 Words  | 5 Pages

    During the mid-fourteenth century, a plague hit Europe. Initially spreading through rats and subsequently fleas, it killed at least one-third of the population of Europe and continued intermittently until the 18th century. There was no known cure at the time, and the bacteria spread very quickly and would kill an infected person within two days, which led to structural public policies, religious, and medical changes in Europe. The plague had an enormous social effect, killing much of the population and encouraging new health reforms, it also had religious effects by attracting the attention of the Catholic Church, and lastly, it affected the trade around Europe, limiting the transportation of goods. As a response to the plague that took place

    Read More

  • The Black Plague During The Renaissance

    1006 Words  | 5 Pages

    According to Ole J. Benedictow “Inevitably [the Black Plague] had an enormous impact on European society and greatly affected the dynamics of change and development from the medieval to Early Modern period. A historical turning point, as well as a vast human tragedy, the Black Death of 1346-53 is unparalleled in human history.” It was one of the most devastating diseases in history

    Read More

  • The Black Death: Changes In Art And Music During The Fourteenth Century

    235 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Black Death also known as the “black plaque” was a widespread of bubonic plaque that killed nearly seventy-five million people and wiped out a fourth of the entire Europe population. The Black Death was caused by the bacterium “…Yersinia pestis that comes from wild rodents that arrived in Europe by sea in October

    Read More

More about Pneumonic Plague Research Paper

Open Document