{"id":17735,"date":"2026-10-07T18:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-07T23:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/?p=17735"},"modified":"2026-10-07T10:09:49","modified_gmt":"2026-10-07T15:09:49","slug":"ministry-of-health-on-high-alert-panama-tracks-suspected-pneumonic-plague-russia-case","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/health\/ministry-of-health-on-high-alert-panama-tracks-suspected-pneumonic-plague-russia-case\/","title":{"rendered":"Ministry of Health on High Alert! Panama Tracks Suspected Pneumonic Plague Russia Case"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Panama&#8217;s Ministry of Health (Minsa) confirmed Tuesday it is monitoring a suspected case of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.who.int\/news-room\/fact-sheets\/detail\/plague\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pneumonic plague<\/a> Russia reported in connection with the death of a 28-year-old researcher. The scientist presented pneumonia of unknown origin, and the clinical picture remains under investigation by international <a href=\"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/business-economy\/burn-baby-burn-extreme-heat-panama-could-reach-42c\/\" rel=\"internal\">health authorities<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Minsa said the event does not currently pose an elevated risk of <a href=\"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/business-economy\/global-fears-mount-96-of-hormuz-vessel-traffic-dead-and-11-in-panama\/\" rel=\"internal\">international spread<\/a>, based on available data from global health organizations. The ministry activated its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.who.int\/health-topics\/international-health-regulations\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">epidemiological surveillance protocols<\/a> under the <a href=\"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/business-economy\/brace-for-impact-panama-banks-face-fallout-from-fed-rate-hike-within-6-months\/\" rel=\"internal\">International Health<\/a> Regulations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/russia-neumonic-plague-1200x800-1-1024x683.webp\" alt=\"Russia Neumonic Plague\" class=\"wp-image-17737\" srcset=\"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/russia-neumonic-plague-1200x800-1-1024x683.webp 1024w, https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/russia-neumonic-plague-1200x800-1-300x200.webp 300w, https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/russia-neumonic-plague-1200x800-1-768x512.webp 768w, https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/russia-neumonic-plague-1200x800-1-150x100.webp 150w, https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/russia-neumonic-plague-1200x800-1-450x300.webp 450w, https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/russia-neumonic-plague-1200x800-1.webp 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Patients with suspected or confirmed pneumonic plague must be isolated and receive appropriate treatment.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Pneumonic Plague Russia Investigation Details<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The European Centre for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ecdc.europa.eu\/en\/plague\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Disease Prevention and Control<\/a> (ECDC) is tracking the situation with limited information. No secondary cases have been reported, nor is there evidence of sustained person-to-person transmission that would drive broader disease spread, according to the ECDC report cited by Panamanian officials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yelkys Gil, Minsa&#8217;s director general of public health, said Panama maintains permanent vigilance over events that could threaten national or international public health. The suspected case emerged after the researcher&#8217;s death in Siberia, where Russian authorities initially investigated a possible laboratory exposure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/neumonic-plague-1200x800-1-1024x683.webp\" alt=\"Neumonic Plague\" class=\"wp-image-17736\" srcset=\"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/neumonic-plague-1200x800-1-1024x683.webp 1024w, https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/neumonic-plague-1200x800-1-300x200.webp 300w, https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/neumonic-plague-1200x800-1-768x512.webp 768w, https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/neumonic-plague-1200x800-1-150x100.webp 150w, https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/neumonic-plague-1200x800-1-450x300.webp 450w, https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/neumonic-plague-1200x800-1.webp 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Pneumonic plague is a severe infectious disease transmitted through respiratory particles. Neumonic Plague by CDC.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Transmission Risk and Clinical Profile<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Pneumonic plague is a severe infectious disease transmitted through respiratory particles. Infection generally requires close and prolonged contact with a symptomatic person. Both bubonic and pneumonic plague stem from the bacterium Yersinia pestis and respond to antibiotics when detected early.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;Bubonic plague and pneumonic plague are diseases that can be treated with antibiotics when detected in a timely manner,&#8221; Gil said. [Translated from Spanish]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Patients with suspected or confirmed pneumonic plague must be isolated and receive appropriate treatment. Close contacts require rapid identification and monitoring, Minsa stated. Panama has not recorded any plague cases for decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DeMT4YmEYms\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DeMT4YmEYms\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">Ver esta publicaci\u00f3n en Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><p style=\" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DeMT4YmEYms\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Una publicaci\u00f3n compartida por Hispania Informa | Noticias (@hispaniainforma)<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Panama&#8217;s Epidemiological Response<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Minsa continues coordinating with international reference organizations to follow the event. The ministry reiterated that epidemiological surveillance across Panamanian territory aims to detect outbreaks, epidemics, and other unusual public health events promptly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Health authorities recommended maintaining basic hygiene measures, including frequent hand washing. The ministry&#8217;s statement underscored that no travel restrictions or additional border controls are currently warranted for the pneumonic plague Russia case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/JumoDm6PRMA?cc_lang_pref=en&#038;hl=en&#038;cc_load_policy=1\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Panama&#8217;s Ministry of Health (Minsa) confirmed Tuesday it is monitoring a suspected case of pneumonic plague Russia reported in connection with the death of a 28-year-old researcher. The scientist presented pneumonia of unknown origin, and the clinical picture remains under investigation by international health authorities. Minsa said the event does not currently pose an elevated<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":17738,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33,31,29],"tags":[50,7385,7387,7386,252],"class_list":["post-17735","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","category-crime-safety","category-politics-government","tag-panama","tag-plague","tag-plague-outbreak","tag-pneumonic-plague","tag-public-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17735","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17735"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17735\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17739,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17735\/revisions\/17739"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17738"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17735"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17735"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17735"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}