News
PRC Approves Electric Co-op's Variance

Biomass Firm Claims Deal

A Forge-Fired Degree

School Year Starts With Buses Rolling Smoothly

'They Took My Life Savings'

Minors Work at DWI Memorial

Saddle Makes All the Difference

Moriarty Discusses New School

Trustee May Step in for Hibbs

Committee Tackles Canyon Traffic

More
News

HOME	CLASSIFIEDS	OBITUARIES	SPORTS	OPINION

Thursday, June 8, 2006

Residents on the Lookout for Plague

By Beth Hahn
Mountain View Telegraph
    East Mountains area residents have more than just fires to worry about.
    On May 26, a Bernalillo County woman died of the plague— the first plague-related death in the state in 12 years— and some residents say she lived in the Sandia Park or Sandia Knolls area.
    A Santa Fe County man, believed to live in an area off Barton Road west of Edgewood, was listed as having a case of the plague on May 31.
    Officials from the state Department of Health would not confirm either location.
    Deborah Busemeyer, a spokeswoman for the DOH, said her department does not release specific locations or neighborhoods in which plague cases are discovered due to federal law.
    "I think it's important for people to realize that in any area of New Mexico, you can contract the plague, especially if you're around rodents," she said in a phone interview Tuesday. "A person does not need to know specifically where or what neighborhood the plague case was to get the prevention information and protect themselves from the disease."
    East Mountains resident Linda Barbour, president of the East Mountain Coalition of Neighborhood and Landowner Associations, said several neighbors and acquaintances confirmed that the Bernalillo County woman was from the Sandia Park or Sandia Knolls area.
    In an e-mail sent to the Telegraph, Barbour said state and county health officials had been going door to door in her neighborhood to hand out fliers about the plague.
    Barbour said state, Bernalillo County and Albuquerque Environmental Department employees are trapping rodents in her neighborhood to gather fleas for testing.
    Patricia Holmes, who lives in Edgewood just off Barton Road, said she would like more information from the state in case the Santa Fe County man was from her neighborhood.
    "I have a yard full of gophers and two dogs, so I would be a prime target (for the plague)," she said Monday.
    Fellow Edgewood resident Sue West said she has been more worried about forest fires this year, but if the Santa Fe County plague case was actually in her neighborhood, "I'd worry about that too."
    Busemeyer said that despite residents' interest in knowing where the plague cases originated, the DOH will stick to its policy of giving only a gender, general age range and county of residence for plague victims.
    The plague, also known as bubonic plague, is carried by fleas that live on wild rodents. City of Albuquerque environmental health educator Matthew Cross-Guillen said plague cases normally increase as weather warms up and both humans and animals are more active.
    State Rep. Kathy McCoy, R-Sandia Park, came home one day about two weeks ago to find a half-eaten rabbit. A few days later, one of her Great Pyrenees dogs became ill.
    After a stay with the veterinarian that cost a few thousand dollars, McCoy's dog recovered fully.
    What made the dog sick, McCoy said, was the plague.
    "It was clearly the rabbit," she said Friday. "We've never had a problem with fleas up here ... I think we have to be extremely cautious."
    Cross-Guillen said sick rodents are usually easier for dogs or cats to catch, and once they're caught, the plague is transferred through flea bites or the exchange of bodily fluids.
    Infected pets can then expose their owners to the fleas or the disease, which has a two- to six-day incubation period, Cross-Guillen said.
    In animals, the signs of the plague are usually lethargy, loss of appetite and fever.
    Cross-Guillen said human symptoms can resemble the flu— headache, fever, chills and sometimes vomiting and diarrhea. However, a case of the plague is not to be mistaken for a common cold or flu.
    "If you feel something out of the ordinary ... a really bad headache, or a fever that spikes at 105, it's symptoms that are out of the blue," he said.
    The telltale symptom of the plague— buboes— is usually not confused with a common cold, Cross-Guillen said.
    Buboes are lymph nodes in the groin, neck or armpit area that become swollen and hot to the touch with a case of the plague, Cross-Guillen said.
    The bacteria that causes plague can also infect the bloodstream, causing what is known as plague septicemia.
    Without treatment, either type of plague infection— through the blood or through flea bites— can cause pneumonia.
    However, if caught early, the plague is easily treatable, Cross-Guillen said.
    To prevent plague, treat pets with a flea and tick repellent. Cross-Guillen recommends asking your veterinarian for advice on what products to use.
    If you notice dead rodents near your property, call the Albuquerque/Bernalillo County Vector Control Office at 873-6613 or your county's environmental department. Cross-Guillen said the best way to deal with dead rodents is not to touch them if at all possible.
    If you absolutely must move the rodent, wear rubber gloves or use a shovel, he said.
    If you suspect you have caught the plague, visit a doctor or clinic immediately. Cross-Guillen said it is extremely important to tell your doctor if you have had any contact with rodents in the past several days.
    To make your home less attractive to rodents, Cross-Guillen recommends clearing areas where rodents usually hide or eat.
    "If you remove the shelter and remove the food source, it can be very effective," he said.
    For more information, contact the state Department of Health from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at (505) 827-0006.