Rabies Health Video

Video Transcript

DR. SUSAN MCGLADDERY: Hello, my name is Dr. Susan McGladdery. I'm the medical director from FirstMed Centers in Budapest, Hungary. I'd like to give you some general information about rabies. This is a serious viral infection of the nervous system, untreated the infection is almost always fatal worldwide about 50,000 people die each year from rabies. Mostly this occurs in developing countries where programs for vaccinating dogs against rabies don't exist. Transmission of rabies occurs by the bite from an infected animal. Typically, this maybe a bat, dog, or raccoon, skunk, fox, small rodents such as squirrels, mice, rabbits, typically, they are not infected with the virus. Prevention, of course rabies can be prevented. There are steps that you can take to reduce the chance that you will be exposed to rabies. The first thing that you should do is make sure that your pets are vaccinated. It's also important to remind your children that animals can be dangerous and they should never touch or feed stray animals wandering around in their neighborhood because those animals could bite them and even spread a disease such as rabies. It's also worthwhile to discuss with your doctor whether vaccination against rabies is appropriate for you. This particularly applies if you plan to travel to an area where you may come into contact with rabid animals. If you suspect that you've been bitten by an animal who may have rabies, what you need to do is immediately go to an Emergency Department. Animal bites, even those that don't involve rabies, may often become infected and require medical treatment. The good news is that if you have been exposed to rabies immediate treatment with a vaccine can prevent you developing any symptoms of the disease but it is important to be given the vaccination immediately after you have been exposed.