Microbiology and Immunology 2500A/B Lecture : Plague Notes.docx

• School: Western University
• Department: Microbiology and Immunology
• Course: Microbiology and Immunology 2500A/B
• Professor: John Mc Cormick

Document Summary

Ring around the rosy refers to the swelling of lymph nodes (buboes) A pocket full of posy refers to people carrying around flowers and herbs to freshen the air (under the impression that the bad air was causing these problems) Ashes, ashes refers to the many dead bodies that had to be burned because they couldn"t bury them all. They all fall down refers to how everyone dies. The incubation period lasts 2-6 days, and death occurs in about 2-4 days. Patients experience a sudden onset of fever, chills, headaches, muscle pains, and weakness. This is accompanied with painful swelling of the lymph nodes (buboes) in the armpits, leg, neck, or groin. The bubonic plague results in high fever, delirium and mental deterioration, large blackish pustules that burst, vomiting of blood, and bleeding of the lungs. There are 3 pandemics of plague studied in this lecture: the plague of justinian, the black death, mid 19th century.