Man diagnosed with rare pneumonic plague in Colorado

By Keith Coffman DENVER (Reuters) – A Colorado man diagnosed with pneumonic plague, a rare form of the disease that is also the most life-threatening, is the state’s first confirmed human case of the illness in a decade, officials said on Wednesday. The bacteria that causes plague occurs naturally in the western United States, particularly in Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona and California, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is the most serious form of the disease, Colorado health officials said, adding that it is the only form of plague that can be transmitted person-to-person, usually through infectious droplets from coughing. Since 1957, 60 human cases of pneumonic plague have been identified in Colorado, and nine were fatal, the health department said.