Recently, a 3-year-old boy in Henan Province died 18 days after being bitten by a vicious dog, which appeared on social media platforms, causing widespread attention and discussion.
It is understood that on April 21, the boy was playing on the side of the road near Zhaogang Village, Xinye County, Nanyang City, Henan Province, when he was attacked by a vicious dog that suddenly ran out, and was bitten in multiple places on his face, neck, and legs. Before the fifth dose of rabies vaccine was administered, the boy developed rabies symptoms such as fever, phobia, mania, and swallowing disorders.
How scary is rabies, and what are the clinical signs? What should I do if I am bitten by a dog? When do I need to get a rabies vaccine?
Learn about rabies
Rabies is an acute encephalitis caused by the genus Rabies virus, which is divided into "manic type" and "paralytic type" according to the clinical manifestations, and the typical clinical manifestations of the former are extreme fear, hydrophobia, wind phobia, pharyngeal muscle spasm, dyspnea, difficulty urinating, defecation, and excessive sweating and salivation. The latter is most common with limb paralysis.
Dogs are the main source of rabies infection in mainland China, accounting for more than 95%. Cats, foxes, weasels, bats, and stray or wild mammals can also carry the rabies virus. Animals such as poultry, fish, insects, lizards, turtles, snakes, etc., cannot be infected with and transmit the rabies virus.
How long is the incubation period for rabies?
The incubation period of rabies is mostly 1~3 months, and it is rare to have less than 1 week or more than 1 year. However, the length of the incubation period is uncertain for each person, so the sooner the response to rabies after exposure, the better. If the wound is large, tetanus vaccine should be given in addition to rabies vaccine to avoid tetanus infection.
Rabies misconceptions
Myth 1: Hurting dogs look normal and should not spread rabies
In the early stage of rabies, there is no obvious abnormality in dogs, and it is difficult for non-professionals to accurately judge whether they are sick or not. Therefore, there is still a risk of spreading rabies after a "normal-looking" dog injures a person.
Myth 2: If you scratch rather than bite, you can get vaccinated later
It's not just a bite that bleeds to become infected, in fact, it's just as dangerous to not bleed after being bitten or caught.
How to manage rabies after exposure
Rabies is a fatal disease with a case fatality rate of nearly 100%. But as long as we do a good job of standardized post-exposure prophylaxis in a timely manner, it is almost 100% effective.
There are three main ways to dispose of wounds after exposure:
1. Rinse the wound and thoroughly rinse all bites and scratches with soapy water and running water at a certain pressure for about 15 minutes.
2. Disinfection treatment, after the wound is rinsed, the wound is rubbed with diluted iodophor or other skin and mucosal disinfectant with virus inactivating effect.
3. Prevent other infections, and use antibiotics rationally according to the wound contamination or infection to reduce other infections other than rabies virus.
How to get along with small animals?
Vaccinate pets against rabies every year to ensure the health of pets and the safety of owners.
Don't take away its food and toys easily, once the cute pet feels violated, it will take actions that threaten human safety.
When encountering wild cats and wild dogs, do not approach or tease, and should stay away as soon as possible.
Don't look at your dog for a long time, otherwise it is easy for them to mistakenly think that you are "provocative".
The Mainland Animal Epidemic Prevention Law stipulates that when carrying dogs out of the house, they should wear dog tags and take measures such as leashing dogs to prevent dogs from injuring people and spreading epidemics.
National Emergency Broadcast Tips
Once injured by dogs, cats, etc., do not be careless, and should seek medical treatment immediately to avoid infection.
Source: CCTV news client