Types of Plague



Plague is also known as the “Black Fever”. It is a disease that can be manifested in diverse forms. There are mainly three types of plague:

  • Bubonic Plague: This is the most common form of the disease. The bacteria infect the lymph system of the person, causing it to get inflamed and tender. These swollen lymph nodes are referred to as buboes, hence, the name for the disease. Fatigue, fever and chills characterize the disease. Bubonic plague, when detected early, responds well to antibiotic treatment.
  • Septicemic Plague: This kind of plague occurs in cases when bubonic plague goes untreated. It may even arise as a complication of bubonic or pneumonic plague. In septicemic plague, toxic materials build up in the blood. Apart from fever, chills and fatigue as in the case of bubonic plague, septicemic plague is also characterized by pain in the abdomen, shock and bleeding underneath the skin. Septicemic plague is not contagious and the chance of the caregiver contracting the disease from the patient is extremely rare.
  • Pneumonic Plague: Pneumonic plague is the most serious version of plague. Here, the bacteria affect the lungs of the person, and this proceeds to the onset of pneumonia. Primary pneumonic plague develops in an individual when the droplets of the infection are inhaled.
Secondary pneumonic plague, on the other hand, develops in a person who has had either bubonic or septicemic plague and the situation has either been untreated or worsened and led to complications. In both cases of pneumonic plague, the chances of other people contracting the disease through droplet infection mode is quite high. Pneumonic plague is associated with fever, fatigue, and headache and then pneumonia sets in. The patient experiences shortness of breath, pain in the chest, cough and in certain cases, blood stained sputum is also expelled from the lungs.