2005/03/29 by Jacob L. Kool · 1 citation
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Medicine · #Yersinia bacterium, plague, ectoparasites research #Bacillus and Francisella bacterial research #Zoonotic diseases and public health #Plague (disease) #Yersinia pestis #Medicine #Transmission (telecommunications) #Contagious disease #Outbreak #Pneumonia #Sputum #Pandemic #Disease #Intensive care medicine #Virology #Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) #Infectious disease (medical specialty) #Tuberculosis #Pathology #Virulence #Internal medicine #Biology
paper · pdf · doi:10.1086/428617
openalex publication_date 2005/03/29 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/22
Plague has received much attention because it may be used as a weapon by terrorists. Intentionally released aerosols of Yersinia pestis would cause pneumonic plague. In order to prepare for such an event, it is important, particularly for medical personnel and first responders, to form a realistic idea of the risk of person-to-person spread of infection. Historical accounts and contemporary experience show that pneumonic plague is not as contagious as it is commonly believed to be. Persons with plague usually only transmit the infection when the disease is in the endstage, when infected persons cough copious amounts of bloody sputum, and only by means of close contact. Before antibiotics were available for postexposure prophylaxis for contacts, simple protective measures, such as wearing masks and avoiding close contact, were sufficient to interrupt transmission during pneumonic plague outbreaks. In this article, I review the historical literature and anecdotal evidence regarding the risk of transmission, and I discuss possible protective measures.