Running head: Medical Aspects of the Black Plague

Medical aspects of the black plague 7

Medical Aspects of the Black Plague

Carrie Buchalski

Luzerne County Community College

Abstract

This paper is an overview of the Medical Aspects of the Black Plague. Included in this essay regarding the black plague is the definition, causes, symptoms, pathophysiology, diagnosing techniques and treatment plans. Also included is an overview of where the Black Plague originated and a touch on its history. This is to give the reader a better knowledge of a disease that ran like wildfire and took the lives of many.

Medical Aspects of the Black Plague

Arriving in Europe in October 1347, the Black Plague was a largely misunderstood disease. The panic began when 12 Genoese trading ships docked at the Sicilian port of Messina after a long journey through the Black Sea. Most of the sailors on board were found dead or gravely ill.

Wayson stain of Yersinia pestis. Note the characte...

English: ', Direct Fluorescent Antibody Stain (DFA...

A scanning electron micrograph depicting a mass of...

They were covered in black boils that oozed blood and pus. They were all accosted by fever, chills, diarrhea and significant pain about their bodies. Before what they called the "death ships" arrived there were rumors about a terrible disease that was making its way through the near and far east. The people were significantly unprepared to what was to come.

The Black Plague is defined as "the epidemic form of bubonic plague experienced during the Middle Ages when it killed nearly half the people of western Europe" (dictionary.reference) The symptoms of the Black Plague were relentless. It was said that the victim would start with a headache. Fever and chills left the host exhausted. Nausea, vomiting, back pain and soreness in the arms and legs were common. Twenty four to forty eight hours later, edematous areas would appear to the neck, inner thighs and under...