Bubonic plague

Bubonic plague
Classification and external resources
An inguinal 'bubo' on the upper thigh of person infected with bubonic plague. Swollen lymph glands (buboes) often occur in the neck, armpit and groin (inguinal) regions of plague victims
ICD-10	A20.0
ICD-9	020.0
DiseasesDB	14226
MedlinePlus	000596

Bubonic plague is the best-known form of the disease plague caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. The name bubonic plague is specific for this form of the disease, which enters through the skin, and travels through the lymphatic system.

The plague was spread by fleas on rats. This method of spreading disease is called a zoonosis.

If the disease is left untreated, it kills about half its victims in three to seven days. The bubonic plague was the disease that caused the Black Death, which killed tens of millions of people in Europe, in the Middle Ages.^[1]

Symptoms of this disease include coughing, fever, and black spots on the skin.

1. ↑ Walker, Cameron (10 March 2004). "Bubonic plague traced to Ancient Egypt". National Geographic News. Retrieved 2 April 2009.