Rabies
Andre Brandon
Transmission
Rabies is spread by the saliva from infected animals. The transmission happens from an bite. In Africa and southeast Asia it is spread by stray dogs.
Stats
Rabies is a fatal disease. 3 billion people in Asia and Africa have the highest risk of getting rabies. 27 animals were tested positive in Iowa in 2010. Rabies is a 100% preventable disease. Infected bats have been found in Scotland. Children is the leading cause of deaths of 4/10 deaths. Bats, Coyotes, foxes, raccoons, and skunks are mostly to have rabies in the U.S.
Symptoms
Symptoms include drooling, loss of felling in any body part, pain at the site of the bite ,and swallowing difficulty. Rabies affects the central nervous system. The early effects of Rabies are head aches, weakness, and illnesses. Death happens a few days after the symptoms. This virus travels to the brain where it cause swelling.
Health
If a animal bites you call 911. Don't adopt wild animals like cats or stray dogs.
Treatment
If a person has rabies they will take 4 doses of Rabies vaccine for 2 weeks. People with a weak immune systems may get a fifth dose of vaccine.
Avoiding Rabies
Avoid contact with animals you don't know about. Make sure your pets get their rabies vaccine every year.
Rabies in Iowa and Other Countries
In 2012, 31 animal cases were reported in Iowa. It was lower in 2001. In 2011 there were 25 animals tested positive. In total there were 712 animals that tested positive between 2001-2012. It is in 150 countries and territories on all continents. There is a high risk of getting rabies in rural countries. Countries like Africa have more risk of getting Rabies. Southeast Asia has a high chance of getting rabies to, and countries like the United States and Canada has a low chance of getting Rabies. The reason why countries like Africa has a high chance of getting rabies because they have a lot of poor people and poor people have a higher risk. The reason countries like the United States have a low risk because they