Mexico issues notice for human rabies: what is it, how is it transmitted and symptoms?

The Government of Mexico issued an epidemiological warning for human rabies, after the confirmation of three human cases in the country and three more suspects.

The epidemiological warning occurs in a context in which Mexico became the first country in the world in 2019 to receive certification from the World Health Organization (WHO) for having eliminated human rabies transmitted by dogs as a public health problem.

RABIES CASES IN MEXICO

One of the confirmed cases was linked to an attack by a cat in the state of Nayarit, the other two confirmed cases, one by laboratory and the other by epidemiological association, the Ministry of Health said in a statement.

There are currently three suspected cases of aggression by a bat and nine more cases of people under observation after a case of rabies was detected in a dog in the state of Sonora.

The Ministry of Health pointed out that before the attack of any animal such as dogs, cats, mice, bats, it is necessary to go immediately for medical evaluation.

The National Committee for Epidemiological Surveillance (Conave), made up of representatives of all the institutions of the national health system at the federal level, issued the notice to all medical, epidemiological surveillance and National Network of Public Health Laboratories units.

Conave established guidelines to catalog possible suspected, probable, confirmed and discarded cases, based on the recommendations of the WHO and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).

WHAT IS RABIES?

Rabies is an animal disease transmitted to people by direct contagion with the sick animal.

It is caused by a virus that belongs to the Rhabdoviridae family, Lyssavirus genus.

Most cases are considered one to three months incubation. Although in Mexico the variation of the period from six to 249 days has been documented, with an average of 69.

HOW IS RABIES TRANSMITTED IN HUMANS?

The dog is responsible for 99% of rabies cases worldwide, according to the alert.

Human rabies is that transmitted by the attack of dogs and cats.

While jungle rabies is obtained from attacks by animals such as bats, coyotes, foxes, skunks, raccoons and other mammals.

Also animals of economic interest such as cows, goats, sheep, pigs and horses are susceptible to rabies.

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF RABIES IN HUMANS?

The disease causes acute and progressive encephalitis. When the virus reaches the central nervous system it is irreversible, which can cause death within seven to 10 days after the first symptom, which is usually neuropathic pain or nerve pain, appears at the inoculation site.

Symptoms manifest through hyperactivity, disorientation, delirium, hallucinations, seizures, and rigidity.

Rabies is responsible for approximately 60,000 deaths a year, mainly in Asia and Africa.

HOW IS RABIES CURED IN HUMANS?

To diagnose rabies, laboratory studies must be done through a cornea imprint, scalp biopsy, saliva sample, and nerve tissue sample.

There is no treatment for rabies, so in case of risk of exposure it is recommended to start with the application of the human rabies vaccine and rabies immunoglobulin. In the face of a slight risk, it is recommended only to apply the vaccine.

With information from Bloomberg