A patient has died of bubonic plague at a hospital in northern Arizona, according to local health officials.
The patient, who has not been identified, died just hours after checking into the Flagstaff Medical Center Emergency Department, a spokesperson for Northern Arizona Healthcare confirmed to the Daily News.
Despite “appropriate initial management” and “attempts to provide life-saving resuscitation,” the patient did not recover and died the same day, the spokesperson said Friday.
Information about the individual and the exact date of death remain limited due to HIPAA regulations, which protect patient privacy.
Based on “rapid diagnostic testing,” officials with the Arizona Department of Health Services reported a presumptive case of plague caused by Yersinia pestis, a bacterium typically found in small mammals and their fleas.
The bubonic plague, the most common form of the disease, is characterized by painful, swollen lymph nodes or “buboes,” according to the World Health Organization.
In the U.S., an average of seven human plague cases are reported each year, and about 80% of them have been the bubonic form, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Symptoms include fever, headache, chills and weakness.
Northern Arizona Healthcare said it’s collaborating with the Coconino County Health and Human Services Department and the Arizona Department of Health Services, “as is standard with infectious disease cases.”
“NAH would like to remind anyone who suspects they are ill with a contagious disease to contact their healthcare provider,” the company spokesperson said. “If their illness is severe, they should go to the Emergency Department and immediately ask for a mask to help prevent the spread of disease while they access timely and important care.”
