The Rabies Vaccine and You

Posted: Jul 31st, 2023 at 12:00AM - by e7 Health

stray dog

While not many travelers think of it, if you're going to be in close contact with animals on a frequent basis during a trip, you might want to get the rabies vaccine. Surprisingly, this lethal disease can be prevented with a course of shots, and the immunity is quite effective.

Wait, What is Rabies?

Rabies is a viral disease of the brain that's usually transmitted through a rabid animal's bite, scratch, or even lick on open skin. It travels through your nervous system, which is why it's able to affect your body so drastically. Historically, the name for rabies was hydrophobia. This refers to a peculiar symptom where the patient develops an extreme and irrational fear of water.

While the rabies virus is most commonly associated with the cultural mindset of wild animals like mad dogs, raccoons, and sometimes bats, it can actually end up affecting almost any mammal. In fact, it's not even limited to mammals but can infect nearly any warm-blooded creature. Birds, however, seem to remain asymptomatic despite developing antibodies.

flying bat

The rabies virus is a serious disease and is nearly always fatal if allowed to run its course. Unfortunately, at times, it can take months for the symptoms to develop in a person. This means that by the time the disease presents itself, the individual is in serious danger.

In its initial stages, the rabies virus presents with nonspecific symptoms like headache and fever. But it can progress and start manifesting as neurological problems. The symptoms are quite startling and can include the following:

  • Anxiety
  • Insomnia
  • Confusion
  • Agitation
  • Terror
  • Paranoia
  • Hallucinations
  • Muscle aches
  • Difficulty breathing

The Rabies Vaccine

Rabies vaccines are available for both pre-exposure and post-exposure. The protocols differ depending on whether you're receiving the inactivated rabies vaccine for occupational or travel reasons, or if you need treatment after already having an interaction with an infected wildlife species.

racoon

Pre-Exposure

Pre-exposure rabies vaccines require a round of two to three shots of the immunization with the first dose being administered on day zero, the second on the seventh day, and the third between 21 days and 3 years from the first dose.

The rabies vaccine is delivered via an intramuscular shot in the shoulder like most vaccinations and runs some risk of minor side effects, such as headache and slight fever.

Disease control and prevention is much better than having to treat potential rabies exposure after the fact. However, post-exposure rabies vaccination is available.

After a Bite or Scratch from an Animal

What if you experience rabies exposure and haven't yet gotten the rabies vaccine yet?

Post-exposure human rabies vaccination is really the only method of treating rabies in humans that has a good survival rate. Nearly everyone who receives the immunization right after exposure will survive, while the only known treatment methodology for those who are already showing symptoms, the Milwaukee protocol, is around 10%. This process involves putting the patient into a coma and then administering antiviral drugs combined with other drugs, like ketamine.

With after-exposure immunization practices, your healthcare provider will assess how many shots you'll need and over what period. It can be a bit complicated and intimidating, but it's much better than the alternative. If you fear you've been exposed (or even if you think you've been potentially exposed), it's absolutely imperative to seek medical attention immediately.

Rabies post exposure prophylaxis (PEP) actually consists of two parts: one dose of human rabies immune globulin (HRIG) and a series of the rabies vaccine. As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes, the patient receives PEP on the day of exposure, and then on days three, seven, and 14.

Adverse reactions to both the rabies vaccine and rabies immune globulin are very rare, and severe allergic reactions even less so. One common side effect is soreness at the injection site. This is normal with many vaccines and usually goes away after a day or two.

At e7 Health, we can both employ preventative measures and also perform post-exposure immunization in the event of a bite from an animal that could potentially carry rabies. We always keep rabies vaccines in stock, so there won't be any need to special order them. Give us a call and schedule your rabies shot. Get vaccinated today!

Who Should Receive the Rabies Vaccine?

If you work in the following fields or engage in any activities that have you around wild animals or at a high risk of animal bites, you should probably consider the rabies vaccines. These might include:

  • Veterinarians and assistants
  • Animal handlers
  • Lab workers who work with the virus
  • Spelunkers (i.e., cave explorers)

woman petting farm animal

The proper precautions must be in place for preventing rabies.

You'll also want to consider it if you're traveling abroad in areas where rabies is more common than in the United States. This will include almost any developing country. If you plan on spending a lot of time exploring and being outdoors, where animal bites are more likely to occur, then consider getting the vaccine, if only for your own peace of mind.

The Infected Animal

If you have a dog, then you may have noticed that your vet gave them the rabies vaccine. This is because most states require (by law) household pets, especially cats and dogs, to get vaccinated against rabies.

Rabbits and small rodents are rarely found with the disease. This doesn't seem to be due to inherent resistance but more due to the fact that only in extremely rare cases would a small animal come into contact with a larger animal infected with the disease and live through the encounter.

Commonly, when an individual is bitten and infected with rabies, the offending animal will have escaped after the incident. This means that if you're bitten by something that you don't capture — and thus can't confirm if the animal is infected — the wise course of action is nearly always going to be to get a rabies vaccine.

Even if you were able to capture the animal, in order to test for rabies in the creature, it would have to be terminated, and testing is then done on the cerebral tissue of the animal.

Since animals infected with the rabies virus will often exhibit uncharacteristic, aggressive behavior, this means that any encounter with an animal that is more hostile than its normal nature could suggest possible infection.

Vaccinating Wildlife to Protect Domestic Animals and Save Lives

In an effort to stop rabies before it spreads, in areas that have a high rate of wildlife rabies, or where there's a rabies outbreak, livestock are vaccinated.

cows in a field

Furthermore, there are significant efforts to use oral rabies vaccination (ORV), particularly to contain rabies among raccoons. The oral rabies vaccination is coated to make it taste better for the animals. These efforts have been vital, as raccoon populations are present in 48 states. Plus, raccoons are inherently attracted to certain human behaviors. For instance, they love digging through our trash bins.

Can Humans Spread the Virus to Each Other?

Transmission of rabies between humans is exceedingly rare. Most historic cases have occurred due to organ transplants. Bites could theoretically transmit the disease but there aren't any recorded cases of it happening in modern times.

5 More Ways to Avoid Rabies

In addition to getting the rabies vaccine, there are simple things you can do to reduce your chances of getting bitten and affected.

  1. Get your dogs and cats vaccinated for rabies! It's the law.
  2. Leave stray animals alone, even if they seem friendly.
  3. Seal your trash cans and feed your pets indoors. These are both things that can attract stray animals if you're not careful.
  4. Always supervise your pets. Some state laws don't allow them to roam freely outside anyway.
  5. If your puppy hasn't yet been vaccinated, keep them away from other animals.

Get the Rabies Vaccine Today

Rabies vaccination is a simple and effective way to protect yourself from rabies and avoid possibly deadly consequences. Even potential exposure is enough of a reason to visit a health clinic and get the rabies vaccine.

e7 Health always carries the rabies vaccines, and we highly recommend them particularly before you travel outside of the United States. Science tells us that vaccination is the best way to keep our communities safe and healthy. This is how we can prevent rabies! If you live in or are visiting the Las Vegas area and need to get the vaccine, learn more about how we can help you and schedule an appointment today.

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