Rabies

Rabies is an infectious viral disease that is generally known as hydrophobia (fear of water). In its early stages, the disease provokes irritability and rage in the affected creatures and this inspires them to bite other creatures, hence, passing the virus on through the animal's saliva. The furious form of the disease is followed by a paralytic form characterized by inability to stand still, drooling, paralysis, and then death.

The virus is transferred to the central nervous system where it becomes established after an incubation period of up to eight months. All mammals are susceptible to the virus, which is nearly always fatal among humans. The virus leads to flu-like symptoms which then develop into brain damage often accompanied by the symptoms that have brought about the description of hydrophobia, which include the apparent unwillingness to drink liquids caused by the inability to swallow.

The only survivors from rabies suffer from often severe brain damage. Victims tend to become very distressed by the process of the disease. Only one person has ever been known to survive rabies without brain damage and it appears she was able to do so only because she entered an induced coma.

As a consequence of the lethality of the disease, severe steps are usually taken to eradicate the disease when outbreaks are reported. A successful vaccine was established by Louis Pasteur through his work on the central nervous system of dogs and it was successfully administered to a 9-year-old boy, Joseph Meister, in 1885. No serum exists presently, but the often lengthy incubation period offers some hope of respite; previously, the postexposure prophylaxis was administered through a painful series of intraabdominal injections with immunoglobulin. This process is assisted by the use of hygienic conditions and washing of bitten areas with soap and water, which can help in controlling the initial infection. Some research into the use of recombinant DNA technology has suggested that it will be possible to create a vaccine that will lead wild animals to become immune to the disease. Of course, there will still be a problem with locating the wild animals, especially in remote and difficult terrain, and causing them to take the medicine in whatever form it is constituted.

Rabies is generally transmitted through the bites of domestic dogs or wild animals, which has led to extensive culling of animals in cases where the presence of rabies is suspected. In southern China, for example, an outbreak of rabies in 2006 led to the reported slaughter of some 50,000 dogs, many of which were [Page 1462]domestic pets. In most countries, China included, lack of sentimentality toward animals make the large-scale culling an obvious precaution in times of need. In some Western countries, a more positive attitude toward animals both represents a potential threat among people unwilling to yield their animals to the authorities when necessary and also a powerful force in policy formation. In the United States, many domestic animals are required to be vaccinated against rabies and programs of vaccination are spreading around the world through the offices of such international organizations as the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations. These programs have resulted in a decrease in the incidence of the disease and of infection of human beings.

...