WHO says plague risk in Russia remains low

Following the recent death of a laboratory worker in Siberia, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said the public health risk from a possible plague outbreak remains low across Russia.

Following the recent death of a laboratory worker in Siberia, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said the public health risk from a possible plague outbreak remains low across Russia.

The assessment follows the death of 28-year-old Darya Shipilova, who died on Oct. 2 after developing severe pneumonia. Russian authorities have not confirmed that she had plague.

Russian media reports suggested she may have become infected after an accident at her workplace, but there has been no official confirmation of such an incident.

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Russian authorities said Shipilova died of “pneumonia of unknown aetiology.”

Precautionary quarantine and monitoring measures have been imposed on people who had contact with Shipilova, including at the research centre in Irkutsk and several hospitals.

Christian Lindmeier, a WHO spokesperson, said the woman’s contacts had been identified and were being monitored, with none showing symptoms of illness so far.

“All of the patients’ contacts have reportedly been identified and are being monitored for illness, and none to date have shown symptoms of illness,” Lindmeier said.

Unconfirmed regional reports suggested that Shipilova may have been exposed to plague bacteria during an accident while handling laboratory samples, but the reports have not been independently verified.

Russian health authorities told the WHO that testing had detected no pathogens associated with dangerous infectious diseases among Shipilova’s contacts.

The WHO said its initial assessment put the health risk at moderate to low in the Irkutsk region, low for Russia as a whole and very low for the WHO European region.

The agency said it was continuing to follow the situation and had requested further information from Russian authorities.

Pneumonic plague is a serious form of plague caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis and can spread through respiratory droplets. It can be fatal if untreated but is treatable with antibiotics when diagnosed early.