title: Plague masquerading as gastrointestinal illness.
abstract: In clinical descriptions of human plague, fever and tender lymphadenitis are emphasized and gastrointestinal manifestations are rarely mentioned. A review of 71 human plague cases showed that gastrointestinal symptoms occurred commonly (57%). Vomiting (39%) was the most frequent symptom, with nausea (34%), diarrhea (28%) and abdominal pain (17%) occurring less often. Physicians treating patients who reside in or have recently visited plague-endemic areas should include plague in the differential diagnosis in the presence of gastrointestinal symptoms and fever.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000368:Aged; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000175:diagnosis; D005260:Female; D005767:Gastrointestinal Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009325:Nausea / Q000175:diagnosis; D010930:Plague / Q000175:diagnosis*; D014839:Vomiting / Q000175:diagnosis