How The Bubonic Plague Made Europe Great
Monday, June 9, 2008 - 13:42
in Health & Medicine
The bubonic plague, often called 'Black Death' after its most famous outbreak in the 14 century, still exists today and, like then, is caused by bacteria called Yersinia pestis that are found mainly in rodents and in the fleas that feed on them. When other animals or humans contract this bacteria it is likewise from rodent or flea bites. Bubonic plague affects the lymph nodes resulting in swollen lymph glands (called buboes, thus the name bubonic), fever, chills and flu-like symptoms but in addition tiny broken blood vessels called petechiae can result in black spots on the skin and those black spots earned it the nickname that stuck when it reached England in 1348 AD. read more
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