Rabies Kills More People Than Ebola

by Michael Fagan, DVM

To follow up on our last blog, which discussed Ebola in dogs, we'll talk about another disease with an even higher mortality rate (virtually 100%), kills 5 times as many people every year (over 50,000)  than Ebola has in the past decade, and exists right here in the US.  Why hasn't this been in the news?

It's rabies.  And it's preventable.  Fortunately, here in the US and much of the developed world, cases of human rabies have been dramatically reduced, thanks to widespread vaccination of dogs, cats, and horses, as well as control of feral dog populations.  Our risk of rabies in the US is primarily from wildlife, especially bats. 

from: Centers for Disease Control

In 2010, about 6000 animals tested positive for rabies in the US, including approximately 2200 raccoons, 1400 skunks, 1400 bats, 400 foxes, 300 cats, 70 each of cattle and dogs.  

from: Centers for Disease Control

The 1400 bats represents about 1 in 6 that are submitted for testing.  All but four states had rabies positive bats.  Wisconsin had 27 bats that tested positive (we had a rabies-positive bat brought to Hallett Veterinary Hospital last month), as well as one skunk and one fatal human rabies case, which was transmitted by a bat. 

The third world, however, is a different story from the US. 
Tens of thousands of people die from rabies every year in Africa, India, and Southeast Asia.  Almost half of those are children.  Their exposure comes mainly from dogs, often stray or feral.  In South America, vampire bats are a common source of exposure.

Every year, more than 15 million people worldwide receive a post-exposure vaccination to prevent rabies.  The cost of treating a person bitten by a rabid animal in the third world is about $400, which is more than an entire year's income for most of the population.    Vaccination after exposure greatly reduces the chances of developing rabies infection, which likely prevents hundreds of thousands of deaths per year.

The cost to vaccinate dogs in these countries would be 10% of the cost to treat people who have been exposed.   Click here for more information on how you can help, and here for informational videos.