>A probable case of plague in the Seychelles, imported from Madagascar, is believed to have sparked the Indian Ocean country’s first outbreak of the disease, the World Health Organization (WHO) said.
>...the first time the disease has appeared in non-endemic urban areas, including in the capital Antananarivo.
>Nearly 70 percent of cases in Madagascar have been pneumonic plague, a form spread human-to-human that is more dangerous than bubonic plague and can trigger epidemics. The pneumonic form invades the lungs, and is treatable with antibiotics. If not treated, it is always fatal and can kill a person within 24 hours.
>An initial diagnostic test on the Seychelles man had been “weakly positive” for pneumonic plague...
>Eight of his contacts “developed mild symptoms and have been isolated,” it said, adding that two other suspected cases, without any known link, had been isolated and were on treatment.
>Nearly 1,000 people who were exposed to the man or his close circle were given a prophylactic course of antibiotics to prevent infection and spread, it said.
reuters.com/article/us-seychelles-plague/madagascar-plague-appears-to-have-spread-to-seychelles-who-idUSKBN1CL1FP
>His partner appears to be ill and is being tested for plague, as is the child who lives with them.
>Dr. Jude Gedeon, public health commissioner of the Seychelles, asked citizens not to panic. Air Seychelles has canceled all flights to Madagascar, and citizens have been advised not to travel there.
nytimes.com/2017/10/11/health/plague-seychelles-madagascar.html