World Rabies Day
28 September 2012
World Rabies Day highlights the impact of human and animal
rabies and promotes how to prevent and stop the disease by combating it
in animals. Sponsors - the Alliance for Rabies Control and the United
States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - report that 55 000
people die every year from rabies, an average of one death every 10
minutes.
There are safe and effective vaccines available for people who
have been bitten by an animal that might have the disease, but usage in
developing countries is low due to the high cost.
It may surprise some people to know that rabies
is still "out there" and still very much a threat to animals and humans
around the world. Since 2007, September 28th has been designated World Rabies Day to increase awareness and address prevention and control of this fatal disease.
Rabies Still A Threat
People and animals are infected by the rabies virus and die from rabies each year.
"Each year around the world, rabies results in more than 55,000 deaths - approximately one death every 10 minutes. Most deaths are reported from Africa and Asia with almost 50% of the victims being children under the age of 15."
What is Rabies or 'hydrophobia' :
Rabies is a viral disease that causes acute encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) in warm-blooded animals.[ The disease is zoonotic,
meaning it can be transmitted from one species to another, such as from
dogs to humans, commonly by a bite from an infected animal. For a
human, rabies is almost invariably fatal if post exposure prophylaxis
is not administered prior to the onset of severe symptoms. The rabies
virus infects the central nervous system, ultimately causing disease in
the brain and death
The rabies virus travels to the brain by following the peripheral nerves. The incubation period of the disease is usually a few months in humans, depending on the distance the virus must travel to reach the central nervous system.Once the rabies virus reaches the central nervous system and symptoms
begin to show, the infection is effectively untreatable and usually
fatal within days.
How Rabies is Spread:
Most often, the rabies virus is spread via bite wounds.
The virus lives in the saliva of infected animals, and is passed into
the tissues of the victim after getting bitten. The virus can also be
spread by getting the virus-laden saliva in an open wound, splashed in
an eye, or other mucous membrane, such as the mouth. Rabies may be
spread between animals and humans, wildlife and pets.
What You Can Do
The first step is to vaccinate your pets. Rabies is a preventable
disease, but 100% fatal in unvaccinated animals. Visit the World Rabies
Day site for more ways to be involved in promoting rabies awareness and eradication..
Prevention
All human cases of rabies were fatal until a vaccine was developed in 1885 by Louis Pasteur and Émile Roux.
Their original vaccine was harvested from infected rabbits, from which
the virus in the nerve tissue was weakened by allowing it to dry for
five to 10 days.Similar nerve tissue-derived vaccines are still used in some countries,
as they are much cheaper than modern cell culture vaccines.
The human diploid cell rabies vaccine was started in 1967; a new and less expensive purified chicken embryo cell vaccine and purified vero cell rabies vaccine are now available.A recombinant vaccine
called V-RG has been successfully used in Belgium, France, Germany, and
the US to prevent outbreaks of rabies in undomesticated animals.
Currently, immunization prior to exposure has been used in both human
and nonhuman populations, where, as in many jurisdictions, domesticated
animals are required to be vaccinated.
In the US, since the widespread vaccination of domestic dogs and cats
and the development of effective human vaccines and immunoglobulin
treatments, the number of recorded human deaths from rabies has dropped
from 100 or more annually in the early 20th century, to one to two per
year, mostly caused by bat bites, which may go unnoted by the victim and
hence untreated.
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services Communicable
Disease Surveillance 2007 Annual Report states the following can help
reduce the risk of exposure to rabies:
- Vaccinating dogs, cats, rabbits, and ferrets against rabies
- Keeping pets under supervision
- Not handling wild animals or strays
- Contacting an animal control officer upon observing a wild animal or a stray, especially if the animal is acting strangely
- Washing the wound with soap and water for 10 to 15 minutes, if bitten by an animal, and contacting a healthcare provider to determine if post exposure prophylaxis is required
September 28 is World Rabies Day, which promotes information on, and prevention and elimination of the disease.
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