RABIES
A VACCINE PREVENTABLE ILLNESS
IDENTIFICATION AND DEFINITION
HISTORY OF RABIES
SIGNS AND SYMTOMS
TRANSMISSION
COMPLICATIONS OF RABIES
Rabies has the potential to be a very debilitating disease, even fatal. Bite wounds can cause nerve or tendon lacerations and infections. A list of some complications of Rabies is as follows:
Brain infection
Cardiac failure
Respiratory failure
Death in about 80% of cases
Coma
CURRENT AND RECOMENDED CONTROL MEASURES
In an effort to prevent the transmission of rabies many countries created laws in the 18th century that allowed for the destruction of stray dogs. However, the public protested this effort and many of the countries did not enforce these laws. In the 19th century quarantine of infected animals was introduced. This was a result of a better understanding of dogs and the transmission of rabies to urban populations. These efforts proved to be effective as evidenced by the reduction of rabies cases in the 20th century.
In 1885 vaccine was introduced to vaccinate dogs to prevent infection and possible transmission to humans. However, it wasn't until the 1920's that this practice was widely used.
Currently, there is no known cure once symptoms of rabies develops. That said, post exposure protocols have proven to be nearly 100% effective when administered soon after exposure. [3]
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 21 Sept. 2015. Web.12 Jan. 2016.
"Rabies History." News-Medical.net. 20 Nov. 2009. Web.12 Jan. 2016 .
"Complications of Rabies." - RightDiagnosis.com. Web. 12 Jan. 2016 .