Man in the US infected with bubonic plague

Health officials in Colorado shared on Monday that a man in Pueblo County, approximately 100 miles south of Denver, has been infected with the bubonic plague.

A spokesperson for the Pueblo Department of Public Health and Environment, Trysten Garcia, shared with USA Today that officials identified the case last week after a preliminary test.

While announcements last week had been more general about what the man was infected with, they can now confirm it is the bubonic plague.

The infection was first reported on Friday, and while the patient was hospitalized, officials said their condition has improved.

Garcia shared that because the plague is endemic locally, it is hard to pinpoint the source of the infection.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that most human cases in the United States have occurred in the Southwest and the West. The disease historically wreaked havoc across Europe and Asia.

Bubonic plague is caused by the Yersinia pestis bacterium and is transmitted by fleas often carried by rodents in the wild, the CDC shared . An infection springs up when infected fleas bite people or humans touch or skin an infected animal.

The World Health Organization says symptoms include sudden fever and chills, severe headache, muscle aches, nausea, and vomiting. They typically develop after an incubation period of a day to a week.

The WHO estimates that 30% to 60% of people die of bubonic plague. In March, a New Mexico man died from the plague, according to state health officials.

There is no vaccine for plague in the United States, according to the CDC. If you ever develop symptoms of plague, health officials say to seek a health provider immediately.