PUEBLO COUNTY, Colo. — A person in southern Colorado tested positive for the plague.
The Pueblo Department of Public Health and Environment (PDPHE) confirmed the case earlier this week.
Health officials are still working to find out how the person contracted the infectious disease. They did not release how the person is doing.
Yersinia pestis, the plague bacterium, occurs naturally and is transmitted by fleas. People can contract the disease by being bitten by infected fleas, by touching or skinning infected animals or by inhaling droplets from a cough of an infected person or animal, the health department said.
Symptoms of plague include:
- Swollen lymph nodes with pain
- Sudden fever and chills
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Severe headache and muscle aches
- A feeling of illness
"If you develop symptoms of plague, see a health care provider immediately," said Alicia Solis, program manager of the Office of Communicable Disease and Emergency Preparedness at PDPHE. "Plague can be treated successfully with antibiotics, but an infected person must be treated promptly to avoid serious complications or death.”
Health officials said people should take the following precautions to limit being infected with plague.
- Eliminate places that rodents can hide and breed around your home, garage, shed or recreation area. Remove brush, rock piles, trash, and piles of lumber.
- Avoid contact with dead animals. If you must handle sick or dead animals follow these guidelines. First, put on an insect repellant to protect yourself from fleas. Then use a long-handled shovel to place it in a garbage bag. Lastly, place the bag in an outdoor garbage can.
- Use insect repellent that contains 20%-30% DEET to prevent flea bites. Treat pants, socks, shoe tops, arms, and legs.
- Do not let pets sleep in bed with you.
- Treat dogs and cats for fleas regularly. Flea collars have not been proven effective.
- Do not allow pets to hunt or roam in rodent areas, such as prairie dog colonies.
- Keep pet food in rodent-proof containers.
