Rabies in the U.S. AN IMMINENT THREAT

Rabies is one of the oldest diseases known to human kind, with recorded incidences dated to 1800 B.C. in Mesopotamia (Flieger, 1990). Rabies is an especially fearful disease for humans, for, once contracted, it is almost always fatal (Kaplan, 1986). "Only three people who showed clear evidence of rabies are known to have survived the illness, and all three suffered permanent nervous system damage resulting in physical or psychological after effects" (Flieger, 1990, p. 23). This research examines rabies. The findings of the research are presented in (1) an introductory background, (2) a discussion of the epidemiology of rabies, and (3) a consideration of the threat of rabies in the United States.

Rabies is an acute, encephalitic viral infection of the nervous system (Evans, 1982; Baer, 1975). Rabies can affect all warmblooded animals. For the greater part, rabies affect animals other than humans (West, 1972). Humans, however, are susceptible to rabies infection. Humans typically contract rabies through a bite by a rabid animal (most often dogs, but also by cats, wild animals, and bats); however, rabies has also been contracted by humans through (1) a lick by a rabid animal over a skin break, (2) by breathing the air in caves inhabited by rabid bats, and (3) the implant of corneas from donors who had undiagnosed rabies (Flieger, 1990).

In some animals, rabies is manifested primarily by paralytic effects (Bacon, 1985). In other animals, h

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rica, and the bat in South America. The skunk is the primary carrier of rabies in North America; however, raccoons are also major carriers in the Eastern United States. Worldwide, approximately 50,000 humans are infected by and die of rabies each year (Audubon Magazine, 1991). In the United States, however, the incidence of rabies in humans averaged only one case per year in the 1980s, which was down significantly from the average of 11 cases per year in the 1950s in the United States (Flieger, 1990). Approximately 18,000 humans each year, however, receive treatment (inoculation) for rabies in the United States (Flieger, 1990). The most effective way to control rabies is through its prevention. In humans, rabies is best controlled through (1) the prevention of rabies in other animals, and (2) the prompt inoculation of humans once infected (Flieger, 1990). Rabies is best controlled in animals through (1) mandatory vaccination programs, and (2) the destruction of stray animals (Evans, 1982). Humans in highrisk occupations (such as veterinarians and animal trappers) are, however, routinely inoculated against rabies. Rabies: An Imminent Threat in the United States The control of rabies in the United States has been qu

Category: Medical - R