Bat Rabies in the News

Tragic case highlights need for further education about bat bites and risk of rabies in the U.S.

..... while the diagnosis indicates the presence of the disease in the area, all Hoosiers should take a few common-sense precautions every day to protect their families, pets and livestock against the disease, regardless of where they live.

.... her husband remembers that the patient had been bitten by a street cat, which the patient wanted to feed, 42 days before the onset of symptoms (3 June 2021). The bite was on the right hand, on the index, and middle fingers. The patient did not consult the doctor for this bite because she only had signs of local phlogosis, little pain, and immediate healing. She did not receive post-exposure treatment for rabies, and the animal was never located

Alabama Public Health officials are urging residents to be cautious after two bats tested positive for rabies at a Clarke County home.

An adult who was in contact with the bat told county Department of Public Health officials that they saw two boys handling the bat in the parking lot...... “We ask parents and other guardians in the area to talk to their children and see if they might be the ones who handled the bat.”

" One patient submitted the bat responsible for exposure for testing but refused PEP, despite the bat testing positive for rabies virus, due to a long-standing fear of vaccines. The other two patients did not realize the risk for rabies from their exposures, either because they did not notice a bite or scratch or did not recognize bats as a potential source of rabies. "