Elmore County Child Battling the Plague

What in the world?! You never hear of people getting the plague anymore, but it happened right here in Idaho!

The child's identity, age, and gender have not been released. According to KTVB, the child is being treated with antibiotics but a prognosis has not been released.

In the past 30 years, only two cases of human plague have been diagnosed in Idaho, eight cases have been confirmed in Oregon.

The child did take a trip to Oregon recently, so officials are unclear whether the child picked up the disease here in Idaho or in Oregon.

The disease was most likely caused by an infected flea bite. Officials say the plague is very rare in humans. What usually happens is that fleas spread the disease between animals. Humans can catch the plague though through direct contact with an infected animal or flea. The plague has been found in ground squirrels here in Idaho as recently as 2016.

Signs of the plague include a high fever, chills, headache, and generalized weakness. Painful swelling of the lymph nodes in the groin, armpits, and neck. Symptoms usually set in within about two to six days after exposure.

We certainly hope this child makes a full recovery.