Plague persists with 7 annual US cases and thousands in Africa since 1990s, per CDC and WHO data

The MedicalXpress report correctly notes ongoing transmission but understates the scale of African incidence, where WHO recorded over 1,000 suspected cases in Madagascar alone during the 2017 outbreak. CDC data show US cases cluster in western states among rodent reservoirs, with pneumonic forms rare but rapidly fatal without streptomycin or gentamicin started within 24 hours. The Siberian lab incident, initially flagged as possible pneumonic plague, tested negative yet exposed gaps in biosafety protocols at research institutes handling select agents. Public health systems must maintain rapid diagnostic capacity and rodent surveillance, as climate-driven shifts in flea vectors could expand endemic zones beyond current maps.