Rabies is a very dangerous disease caused by the bite of animals. And more than 96% of the time, this disease is caused by dog bites.
Can you tell what causes fear in this disease? Here are the options:
1. Water
2. Air
3. Light
4. Sound
5. Or all of these things
Today we will learn what happens in this disease? How can we prevent it? Is there a treatment or not? and What should you do if someone in front of you is bitten by a dog?
What is Rabies?
When a rabid dog or a dog that has Rabies licks us, the saliva from its mouth enters our body carrying the rabies virus.
When this virus enters our body, it causes the most horrible known communicable disease called rabies. It is the most deadly disease spread from animals to humans till now.
‘RABIES: A PREVENTABLE VIRAL DISEASE MOST OFTEN TRANSMITTED THROUGH THE BITE OF A RABID ANIMAL’
Why is it so dangerous that the patient feels intense thirst and with this thirst, they feel an equal fear of water. They are thirsty but cannot drink water. And the sad thing is that we have no cure for this disease. And death is almost certain in this case.
‘NO TREATMENT, ONLY PREVENTION’
In India, every year 21,000 people die from this disease, and in which 96% of the time it happens due to dog bites. And every year more than 23,00,000 people get vaccinated for it.
Rabies can prevail in most areas of India except the Andaman and Nicobar islands.
How is Rabies Transmitted?
Now we know how it spreads to us. This disease will come to us only when the animal has rabies.
‘ONLY RABID ANIMALS CAN TRANSMIT RABIES’
The rabies virus is in the saliva of the animal. If that animal bites you, you will get this disease. Besides, if it licks you, or your skin is broken, or there was an injury, the disease will be transmitted.
If that animal licks your mucus membranes, namely (Mouth, eyes, nose), the disease gets transmitted to us.
Apart from this, it can be transmitted through the cornea transplant, to the one who has had a cornea transplant.
Which Animal Can Transmit?
Rabies is mostly caused by dog bites. But any warm-blooded animal can cause this disease, such as monkeys, sheep, goats, cows, buffaloes, foxes, jackals, squirrels, rabbits, rats, or birds.
Incubation of Disease
In this disease, when an animal infected with rabies bites you, the rabies virus is introduced into your system.
Initially, the virus remains at the site of the bite, where it begins to multiply. Subsequently, it penetrates the nervous system and gradually makes its way to the brain.
The progression of the virus from the nervous system to the brain is slow, and signs of the disease become apparent only once the virus has successfully invaded the brain.
The journey of the virus to the brain can span from 15 days up to 6 years, explaining why symptoms can emerge long after the initial bite.
Upon reaching the brain, the virus affects the surrounding neural areas, triggering the onset of the disease’s symptoms.
Symptoms of Rabies
In the early phase of this disease, there is pain, burning, and tingling at the place where the bite occurred.
‘INITIAL SYMPTOMS: LOCAL PAIN, HEADACHE, FEVER, VOMITING’
Besides, there can be a headache, fever, weakness, vomiting, or sore throat.
When the disease properly reaches the brain, when the virus completely invades the brain, then the proper symptoms of this disease appear.
‘FURIOUS RABIES RESULTS IN: HYPERACTIVITY, EXCITABLE BEHAVIOR, HALLUCINATIONS, LACK OF COORDINATION, TREMORS’
It includes tremors, seizures, hyper excitement. The patient becomes very excited, violent, often experiences intense fear, and spasms occur in different muscles.
‘FURIOUS RABIES RESULTS IN: INTENSE THIRST WITH HYDROPHOBIA (FEAR OF WATER), AEROPHOBIA (FEAR OF DRAFTS OR FRESH AIR)’
What is muscle spasm?
The patient suffers from severe muscle contractions affecting breathing, eating, and all chest muscles when exposed to triggers like drinking water, experiencing a breeze, bright light, or loud sounds. This leads to the obstruction of all relevant pathways.
As a result, the patient is unable to breathe, eat, or swallow. Moreover, they experience severe thirst, but attempting to drink water results in the blockage of the esophageal pathway and triggers muscle spasms, both of which occur at the same time.
‘FURIOUS RABIES RESULTS IN: DEATH OCCURS A FEW DAYS AFTER DUE TO CARDIO-RESPIRATORY ARREST’
Besides, there is a change in the patient’s voice and tone of speaking. And almost all patients die.
There is also another form, called the paralytic form. In this, there is not much excitement, but the patient’s body muscles get paralyzed. And death occurs due to paralysis.
‘PARALYTIC RABIES: ACCOUNTS FOR ABOUT 20% OF CASES AND WILL CAUSE MUSCLES TO GRADUALLY WEAKEN, STARTING FROM THE SITE OF THE EXPOSURE AND EXPANDING OUTWARDS. AND EVENTUALLY CAUSES DEATH USUALLY BY RESPIRATORY FAILURE’
Suspecting a Rabid Animal
Since this disease spreads from animals, its symptoms appear first in them. If you have any pets, you can find out if it has rabies.
‘CHANGE OF BEHAVIOR IN ANIMALS, FEEDING HABITS, EXCESSIVE SALIVATION, TENDENCY OF BITING, CHANGE IN BARKING SOUND, VOMITING, SEIZURES, PARALYSIS IN LOWER JAW’
When a dog is affected, there’s a noticeable alteration in its behavior and dietary habits, manifesting as abnormal eating patterns, increased salivation, and heightened aggression.
The dog also shows an increased propensity to bite, becoming hostile towards everyone. Changes in the sound and tone of its bark are observed as well.
Moreover, symptoms like vomiting, seizures, and paralysis in the lower jaw may develop.
Such clinical signs are not exclusive to dogs; other animals exhibit similar behaviors. In cows, buffaloes, and cats, there is a significant rise in aggressive behavior, with an inclination to bite both larger animals and humans.
These animals may also display excessive drooling, alterations in gait, and irregular leg movements.
How to Prevent Rabies?
Now how can we prevent this disease? Because 96% of the time this disease is caused by dog bites.
If it’s a pet dog, then definitely get it vaccinated.
‘GET YOUR PET DOG VACCINATED’
If you live in a society or gated community. Or visiting a park, then in my opinion, it should be mandatory that if you are bringing a pet dog along, then show its vaccination certificate.
Because most dog bites happen to children. And the most cases are seen in children between 5 to 15 years of age, and the most deaths occur in them as well.
‘KEEP CHILDREN SAFE AROUND DOGS’
So it is our and our society’s responsibility that, any pet dog entering premises where children play, there must be a need to show the dog’s vaccination certificate.
What to do If Dog Bites?
Unfortunately, if a dog-bite occurs, what should we do now?
Due to the severe risk posed by Rabies, a disease transmitted through dog bites, it is essential to treat every dog bite as if it were inflicted by a dog with Rabies. This approach is adopted because there is a possibility that the biting dog may be infected with the Rabies virus.
‘ALL DOG BITES ARE PRESUMED AS RABID’
And we take all those precautions that should be taken for a rabid dog.
One thing to note is that if the dog that bit should die within 10 days of the bite. If this does not happen, it will be assumed that the dog did not have rabies.
1. The first and most important step after a dog bite is to wash the area where the bite occurred continuously for 15 minutes with running water and soap. The Rabies virus is killed by soap.
Therefore, washing the area continuously for 15 minutes with water and soap neutralizes both the Rabies virus and the dog’s saliva.
‘THOROUGHLY WASH THE WOUND WITH SOAP AND WATER’
2. In addition, Antiseptic liquid such as Betadine can also be used. This will kill any remaining viruses.
‘USE ANTISEPTIC LIQUID OVER THE WOUND’.
3. Then go to the Hospital immediately for further treatment.
In hospitals, you will receive initial treatment for rabies, antibiotics, and a vaccine.
Who Should Get Vaccinations?
Who should get the rabies vaccine? For this, we divide the wound into three categories.
1. The first category is that your skin is completely intact. There is no wound or scratches.
It means that the dog has only licked you. That too only your skin and not your mucus membranes (eye, nose, mouth). In this, you wash with proper water and soap and you do not need to take a vaccine.
2. The second category of wound is if the dog has given you minor scratches. There is no bleeding, your skin is not peeled off, there are only small scratches, then you need to take a vaccine.
In this, 5 injections are given on your arms or at the intra-muscular location over a period of one month.
3. If blood has come out from the bite, or the top layer of your skin has been removed, or it has licked your mucous membranes (eyes, nose, mouth) or the area around it.
Or it has licked our genital area, then in such a condition you need to take a vaccine as well as Immunoglobulin.
What is Vaccine and Immunoglobulin?
A vaccine involves injecting inactivated or weakened viruses into the body, which are incapable of causing disease.
Once administered, these agents stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies. These antibodies then attach to any viruses that have entered the body through the dog bite, effectively neutralizing them.
And immunoglobulins are when you take ready-made antibodies and inject them into the patient, they are called immunoglobulins.
When the wound is deep, there has been bleeding, in that case, we talk about injecting immunoglobulins, and these immunoglobulins are injected around the area where the bite occurred.
Now a question may arise in your mind that when we have been bitten by a dog and the rabies virus has entered our body due to the bite, why doesn’t the body make enough antibodies? Why do we have to inject from outside?
This happens because the quantity of that virus is very low. And often that virus goes inside and enters our cells and nerves, and is not visible to our body, so our body does not make sufficient amounts of antibodies.
That’s why we stimulate these antibodies from outside by giving a vaccine and start it.
If the Dog bite is on our face, our neck, or as close to our brain, the sooner the symptoms appear. The more dangerous symptoms appear and the sooner death occurs. So it is also important where the dog bite occurred.
Hopefully, this information will be helpful for you. And how dangerous a dog bite can be and how all of us need to keep ourselves safe. And stay cautious.