The most fatal disease in the world is not cancer, heart disease, or other conditions of which most people may think. The most fatal disease in the world is rabies, and it has plagued mankind as long as written histories have been available.
Rabies is a zoonotic disease (a disease that is transmitted to humans from animals) that is caused by a virus. The disease infects domestic and wild animals, and is spread to people through close contact with infected saliva via bites or scratches.
Rabies facts you should know:
• Rabies occurs in more than 150 countries.
• Worldwide, more than 55,000 people die of rabies every year.
• 40 percent of people who are bitten by suspect rabid animals are children under 15 years of age.
• Dogs are the source of 99 percent of human rabies deaths worldwide.
• Every year, more than 15 million people worldwide receive post-exposure treatment, which is estimated to prevent 327,000 rabies deaths annually.
• In the U.S. the most commonly reported rabid wildlife species include raccoons, skunks, bats, foxes, coyotes, rodents, and rabbits, while in domestic animals it is found in cattle, horses, cats and dogs.
Since 1900, the number of human deaths in the United States due to rabies has declined from 100 or more each year to an average of 2 or 3 per year. Two programs have been responsible for this decline. First, animal control and vaccination programs begun in the 1940s and oral rabies vaccination programs in the 2000s have eliminated domestic dogs as reservoirs of rabies in the United States. Second, effective human rabies vaccines and post-exposure treatments have been developed.
World Rabies Day is an international campaign coordinated by the Global Alliance for Rabies Control with the endorsement of the World Health Organization, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, the United Nations, and other organizations to raise awareness about the impact of rabies on humans and animals, provide information and advice on how to prevent the disease, and how individuals and organizations can help eliminate the main global sources. World Rabies Day takes place each year on September 28, the anniversary of the death of Louis Pasteur, who, with the collaboration of his colleagues, developed the first effective rabies vaccine.
What can you do about rabies?
• You can start by keeping your pets vaccinated against rabies —this directly helps protect them, as well as you, from the risk of rabies.
• Comply with local ordinances regarding the reporting of animal bites or scratches — while the risk from rabies in the U.S. is small, it still occurs and usually with fatal consequences.
• Teach your children not to approach strange dogs — there are over 800,000 dog bites annually in the U.S. and an average of 12 people die each year from dog bite injuries.
• Use your community’s animal control resources in the event that you are bitten or scratched by a dog or cat or you notice any wildlife acting ill or abnormally.
Dr. Kiel is the U.S. Army veterinarian currently supporting NAS Whidbey Island and Naval Station Everett. Please send questions or comments to Dr. Kiel at joseph.kiel@navy.mil.
