Rabies: First Aid, Disease Control, and Getting the Vaccine
Table of Contents
Rabies is one of the oldest known infectious diseases, and it remains one of the deadliest. The name alone carries weight, conjuring images of frothing dogs and frenzied attacks, yet the disease is preventable when the right steps are taken in time. What that risk actually looks like, and what can be done about it, is worth a clear-eyed look.
What Is Rabies?
Rabies is a viral disease that attacks the central nervous system and causes inflammation of the brain. This leads to the symptoms most associated with rabies: the aggression, the foaming at the mouth, the erratic behaviour. Once the virus takes hold it progressively destroys the nervous system and is almost always fatal.
How Rabies Is Transmitted
Rabies spreads through the saliva of an infected animal. It passes from animals to people, as one of more than 200 known zoonotic diseases, but stands apart in that survival without treatment is virtually unheard of. The virus enters the body when infected saliva contacts broken skin or mucous membranes, primarily through a bite or scratch. It can also be transmitted if saliva makes direct contact with the eyes, nose, or mouth. Exposure to blood, urine, or faeces from an infected animal is not known to transmit the virus.
Infected Animals That Carry Rabies
All mammals are susceptible to rabies infection. Including:
Dogs. Dogs are the primary source of human rabies deaths globally. In countries where rabies is not well controlled, free-roaming dogs account for at least 9 in 10 human cases.
Cats. Cats can carry and transmit rabies in the same way dogs can. They are a lower-risk source statistically, but contact with stray or unvaccinated cats warrants the same caution as contact with dogs.
Bats. In Australia, bats are the only possible carrier. Bats may not display obvious signs of illness when infected, which makes any contact with a bat in Australia a reason to seek immediate medical assessment.
Signs and Symptoms of Rabies Exposure
There are no symptoms of rabies infection between exposure and the onset of illness. This period is two to three months in most cases but can range from one week to over a year, depending on where the bite occurred and how much virus was introduced. Bites closer to the brain tend to produce a shorter incubation period.
The first signs are non-specific and easy to miss. Fever, fatigue, headache, and nausea may appear alongside unusual tingling, itching, or burning at the original bite site. As the rabies virus reaches the central nervous system, two distinct patterns can develop:
Furious rabies. This form affects around 80% of people with rabies. It is characterised by anger, hallucinations, and muscle spasms. Hydrophobia, an involuntary spasm triggered by attempting to swallow water, is possibly the most well-known sign.
Paralytic rabies. Paralysis begins at or near the bite site and spreads progressively through the body.
How to Prevent Rabies: The Rabies Vaccine
Rabies is vaccine-preventable. Vaccination can be given before exposure as a precautionary measure or after a known exposure to stop infection from developing and is recommended for people at higher ongoing risk of exposure, including veterinarians, wildlife handlers, bat carers, and travellers spending extended time in rabies-endemic areas. Pre-exposure vaccination does not eliminate the need for post-exposure treatment if a bite or scratch occurs, but it simplifies that treatment and extends the time available to receive it.
First Aid for Animal Bites and Scratches
When a bite or scratch from a potentially rabid animal occurs, the only first aid you can provide is wound care. Thorough washing with soap and water is the best care that you can provide other than seeking professional medical help as soon as possible. Washing the wound reduces the risk of other infections, but if the bite was infected with rabies then your only course of action is to get the bitten person to a hospital.
Taking a first aid training course can give you the skills to ensure the wound is properly cleaned. It can also help you to recognise the signs of when something is wrong or worse than it should be, like when a bite is infected with rabies. By enrolling today you can be prepared to act when the worst happens.
FAQs
Is There Such Thing as Human Rabies?
No. While rabies is transmitted via saliva and animal bites, there has never been a recorded case of human-to-human rabies transmission.
Does the Rabies Vaccine Need to Be Repeated After Every Trip Overseas?
Not necessarily. People who have completed a full pre-exposure course can have their antibody levels tested to confirm ongoing protection. If levels remain adequate, booster doses may not be required before every trip.
Can Children Receive the Rabies Vaccine?
Yes. There is no lower age limit for the rabies vaccine, and children can receive it under the same indications as adults.
