Girl, 7, catches the PLAGUE from fleas on dead squirrel while camping with family

• Sierra Jane Downing infected in Pagosa Springs, Colorado, a week ago
• State's first recorded case of bubonic plague in six years
• Archaic 'Black Death' killed 25 million as it swept through Europe in 14th century
• Girl recovering well and out of ICU

The parents of the seven-year-old who was diagnosed with bubonic plague revealed they thought she had the flu when she fell sick days after camping in southwest Colorado.
An emergency room doctor who saw Sierra Jane Downing for a seizure and 107-degree fever wasn't sure what was wrong either.
She was then flown to Denver, where a pediatric doctor at Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children got the first inkling that she had bubonic plague.

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Struck down: Doctors believe Sierra Jane Downing, pictured, contracted the plague from a dead squirrel while camping

Victim: Sierra Jane Downing, seven, from Pagosa Springs, Colorado, is pushed in a wheel chair by a nurse following a news conference about her recovery from Bubonic Plague

Symptoms: Sierra Jane Downing's parents thought she had the flu when she fell sick after camping in Colorado

The doctor figured it out using Sierra Jane's symptoms, a history of where she'd been and an online journal search.
The bubonic plague hasn't been confirmed in a human in Colorado since 2006. Federal health officials say an average of seven cases are reported in the U.S. each year.
Doctors believe Sierra Jane Downing contracted the disease, also known as the 'black death', from a dead squirrel while camping with her family in Pagosa Springs. Fleas are common transmitters of the plague.

 

The girl's parents rushed her to the Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children a week ago and from there she was flown by helicopter to Presbyterian St Luke's Medical Center in Denver, running a high fever.

'She originally presented with a temperature of 107 degrees,' Dr Wendi Drummond told 9 News. 'She had also had a seizure.'
Dr Drummond along with colleague Dr Jennifer Snow diagnosed Sierra with the rare condition, which killed some 25 million people when it swept through Europe in the 14th century.

'She had a high heart rate and low blood pressure,' Dr Snow said. 'It all originally pointed to signs of what's called septic shock.'

On the mend: She is recovering from Bubonic Plague at the Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children at St Luke's

Team: Seven-year-old Sierra Jane looks on while surrounded by medical staff and parents Sean and Darcy Downing during a news conference talking about her recovery from Bubonic Plague

Neither woman had seen a case of the plague before but the more they investigated, the more they began to suspect that it was what Sierra had contracted.
'You learn about it in medical school during microbiology, but I had never seen a case of it before,' Dr Snow said, who quickly administered the antibiotic gentamicin.
'If she had stayed home, she could've easily died within 24 to 48 hours from the shock of infection,' Snow said.
After two days where her condition continued to go downhill, Sierra turned a corner and on Monday she left the pediatric ICU.
Without treatment the plague kills around two thirds of infected humans within four days.

'It's one of those things that you don't necessarily expect to see,' Dr Drummond said. 'But, it's definitely one of those things you don't want to miss.'

THE SYMPTOMS OF A DISEASE FROM THE MIDDLE AGES

Bubonic plague symptoms usually appear between two and five days after exposure to the bacteria. The symptoms include:

• Gangrene of the extremities such as toes, fingers, lips and tip of the nose
• Fever
• Muscle Cramps
• Seizures
• Painful lymph gland swelling called a bubo, commonly found in the groin, but may occur in the armpits or neck, most often at the site of the initial infection
• Bleeding out of the ear begins after around 12 hours of infection

Other potential symptoms include heavy breathing, continuous vomiting of blood, aching limbs and extreme pain, usually caused by the decay of the skin while the person is still alive.