10 Tips: Rabies/Prevention/Children

November 29, 2009

Posted in Outdoor Recreation, Prevention, Vaccinations
Tags: abdominal wall, anti-rabies injections, anti-rabies vaccine, bats, cats, dogs, globulin, horse serum-derived, Manu Ginobili, monkeys, numerous injections, rabid, rabies, rabies virus, raccoons, saliva, salivary glands, side effects, skunks, untreated rabies, vaccines, virus

Several weeks ago, on Halloween evening, an eerie event interrupted the basketball game between the San Antonio Spurs, the home team, and the Sacramento Kings. A bat, the flying kind, fluttered about just above the playing floor, probably brought into the arena by a fan, as a (not-so-funny) Halloween prank.

A Spurs player, Manu Ginobili, eager to resume play, amazingly snatched the bat out of midair with his bare hand – all recorded on TV. Manu’s reward for this fete: six anti-rabies injections over the following four weeks.

At a subsequent press conference, Manu said, “Kids, don’t do this at home. Don’t handle bats. Don’t swat them. Don’t do anything. Or to raccoons.” 

Right on, Manu.

Here is what parents should know about rabies:

1. About 40,000 Americans, a majority of them children, require anti-rabies injections each year. They are bitten or licked and, rarely, scratched by animals that are possibly rabid and the animals are not available for observation or testing. Untreated rabies is virtually 100% fatal; one person apparently survived the disease.

2. Modern anti-rabies injections are safe, have minimal side effects, and are no more painful than other vaccines. At one time, horse serum-derived vaccines were used. These required numerous injections, usually into the abdominal wall, were painful, and frequently caused side reactions, sometimes severe ones. 

3. Any mammal (warm blooded animal) can be rabid. Historically, rabies is linked with dogs. In fact, in the U.S. today, almost as many cats as dogs are rabid; one reason is that pet owners are less likely to vaccinate their cats. Very rarely, even farm animals are rabid.

Generally, vaccinations are not required when bites are inflicted by vaccinated, domestic animals that do not run wild, and are available for observation and testing.

4. In the U.S., bats have become an important source of rabies. Moreover, in the case of bats, proximity to them - finding one in a child’s bedroom, for example, may be reason to treat the child. Bat bites can be virtually painless and leave small marks that are easily overlooked. Note that bats are found in cities as well as in rural areas.

5. Rabies is caused by a virus that is present in the saliva of rabid animals. When such animals bite, they introduce the virus into the wound. The virus travels from the wound, via nerve fibres, to the brain, damaging the brain, including making infected animals more aggressive. The virus also finds its way to the salivary glands, contaminates the saliva, spreading the disease to the next victim, usually another animal, but, rarely a human.

Rabies can also spread from the scratch of an infected animal if the paw is contaminated with saliva.

6. Young children may be more at risk for rabies than adults. Children are attracted to animals and animals may be attracted to children. Children, because of their size, may be more likely to be bitten around the head, leaving disfiguring wounds. Wounds near the head appear to be more likely to lead to the disease than wounds elsewhere on the body. And children may not report bites to their parents. 

7. Prompt treatment is 100% effective in preventing rabies.  Thoroughly wash wounds with soap and water and consult local health officials whether vaccination is necessary. Treatment requires two types of injections: rabies immune globulin and anti-rabies vaccine. The globulin provides immediate protection. Anti-rabies vaccine requires about a week to become effective.

8. Rabies remains widespread in wild animals in most parts of the world, including the U.S. and Canada.  In North America, animals most commonly infected are bats, raccoons, foxes and skunks.

Don’t allow children to pet or feed wild animals, or get close to photograph them. Report all encounters between your children and wild animals and between your pets and wild animals. Check with a veterinarian before adopting stray animals.  

9. Rabid dogs are found in many developing countries, including in areas frequented by travelers. Worldwide, about 50,000 people die of rabies each year. Hikers and bicyclers are at increased risk. Keep your distance from monkeys; never eat in their presence. They jump for food in your hands and in the process may bite or scratch you.

10. Consider pre-exposure rabies vaccination for high risk situations. When backpacking in remote areas of developing countries, for example where rabid animals exist and anti-rabies injections may be unavailable. Pre-exposure vaccination eliminates the need for rabies immune globulin and reduces – but does NOT eliminate - the number of injections required after an encounter with a possibly rabid animal. Check with experts in travel medicine.

Posted in Outdoor Recreation, Prevention, Vaccinations
Tags: abdominal wall, anti-rabies injections, anti-rabies vaccine, bats, cats, dogs, globulin, horse serum-derived, Manu Ginobili, monkeys, numerous injections, rabid, rabies, rabies virus, raccoons, saliva, salivary glands, side effects, skunks, untreated rabies, vaccines, virus