Colorado Confirms Another Fatal Plague Case

Recent testing has confirmed a case of plague associated with the death of an Archuleta County resident.

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and San Juan Basin Public Health (SJBPH) announced on September 25, 2023, that they are investigating this plague case. 

Most human cases are acquired directly from fleas, and pets with plague can transmit the illness to humans. Over 80% of United States plague cases have been the bubonic form, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Plague (Yersinia pestis) is caused by bacteria that can be transmitted to humans by the bites of infected fleas or by direct contact with infected animals. Symptoms include the sudden onset of high fever and/or swollen lymph nodes, according to SJBPH.

Tiffany Switzer, Interim Executive Director of SJBPH, commented in a press release, "Plague is frequently detected in rock squirrels, prairie dogs, wood rats, and other species of ground squirrels and chipmunks."

The Colorado previously reported a plague case in Montezuma County in June 2023.

The risk to the general public is low, says SJBPH.

Most human cases in the U.S. are reported in two regions: Northern New Mexico, northern Arizona, and southern Colorado; and California, southern Oregon, and far western Nevada.

SJBPH stresses the importance of controlling wildlife and fleas around homes.

Furthermore, see a healthcare provider if you become ill with a high fever and/or swollen lymph nodes, as plague is a treatable illness.

And contact a veterinarian if your pet becomes ill with a high fever and/or an abscess (open sore) or swollen lymph nodes.

Plague was first introduced into the United States in 1900 by rat–infested steamships that had sailed from affected areas. 

The last urban plague epidemic in the United States occurred in Los Angeles from 1924 through 1925. 

New plague vaccine candidates are developing but are not expected to be commercially available immediately.

However, researchers from Tel Aviv University and the Israel Institute for Biological Research's mRNA-based, lipid nanoparticle vaccine were effective against a lethal bacteria.

Published on March 8, 2023, a mice study demonstrated that all vaccinated animals were fully protected against the bacteria that causes the plague.

To learn more about the symptoms, treatments, and other information for plague, visit https://sjbpublichealth.org/183/Communicable-Disease. Information is also available from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment at https://cdphe.colorado.gov/animal-related- diseases/plague.