Human beings have known about rabies as far back as the 23rd century BC, and it is mentioned in records from China, India, Mesopotamia, Greece, and Egypt. Even back then, scholars knew that rabies could be transmitted from the saliva of animals.
The most common way for people to contract rabies is via a bat bite, but other animals can transmit the disease as well. Dogs are the primary cause of human rabies cases in less developed countries. Other animals that transmit the disease include raccoons, skunks, foxes, and other mammals like coyotes, badgers, and monkeys.
The Rabies Situation Has Mostly Been Handled in the United States
Rabies has been less of a problem in the United States, as the country has taken specific precautions to make it more preventable. Part of this includes the domestication of dogs. and the requirement to have these dogs vaccinated for rabies when they are young.
Doctors also understand how to treat the illness, assuming they start treatment as soon as possible. Quick response, which includes PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis), can help prevent the disease from getting worse. But this is only true in the most developed countries.
Rabies Continues to Kill People in Underdeveloped Countries
Rabies can be a common cause of death for people in less-developed areas, and the disease causes the deaths of 59,000 people each year. The vast majority of those people who die from a dog bite in underdeveloped countries were bitten by a dog.
The problem for people in poorer areas is that they do not have access to quick medical care, which is key to preventing death from rabies. With the disease, as soon as the symptoms set in for people, it always means it will result in death.
The Disease Has Been on the Rise Since COVID-19
Scientists have seen a rise in rabies cases around the world, especially in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. This has been especially troubling to doctors and scientists as the disease is not only deadly, but it is also completely preventable and treatable.
In 2023, the National Institute of Health put out an urgent warning about the rise of rabies. The biggest way the agency is trying to prevent further cases is through education. The organization is also trying to make sure that doctors in undeveloped countries have access to PEP kits that can help save lives.
America Does Well With Rabies Thanks to Education
Scientists have long done everything they could to spread information about the disease. In addition to vaccinating dogs and making sure doctors have the right supplies, education has been crucial in making sure people survive rabies infections.
Thanks to movies, television, and doctors, people in the United States know about rabies, what animals carry it, and how to treat the disease if they are bitten. Thanks to movies like Old Yeller and Cujo, people know about just how dangerous rabies can be.
The State of New York Issued an Emergency Declaration
Before this year, Nassau County in New York’s Long Island had not had a case of rabies since 2009. But that has changed this year. In the month of July alone, the country experienced 25 cases of rabies. That was enough for New York to declare a state of emergency.
No one has died from the rabies cases in Nassau County, but the fact that so many cases are arising after a decade of none of them is especially concerning. The animals in Nassau County that can be rabid are raccoons and feral cats. State officials are urging anyone who is bitten or scratched by an animal to seek treatment immediately.
Raccoons Make Up a Large Percentage of US Cases
The New York cases are largely being blamed on the raccoon population, and that is not unusual. Raccoons are responsible for a larger number of rabies cases in the U.S. than any other animal, about 30% of the cases.
Skunks are the second-most common cause of rabies in the United States, responsible for 20% of cases. Foxes are third, making up about 7% of the cases. Other than those 3, people contract rabies from animals like wild cats and dogs.
Officials Have Some Guesses As To Why Cases Are on the Rise
New York officials have a few ideas as to why the outbreak has happened. To start, Nassau County did not lay rabies vaccine bait to control raccoons like they usually do. This is considered an important step in controlling wildlife.
There has also been an increase in wildlife in Nassau County in general. As the raccoon population grows, there are more animals that can infect both humans and other raccoons.
Americans Do Die From Rabies
While deaths from rabies are rare in the United States, that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t happen. According to the CDC, around 10 people in the U.S. die from rabies each year.
This represents a drastic decline in deaths since 1900-1960, when rabies deaths were quite common. The medical community has not only developed a vaccine against the disease, but they have also figured out how to identify and treat rabies before symptoms occur, as the person usually dies from the disease at that point.
Conclusion
Over the last 50 years in America, it has gotten to the point where people contracting rabies was kind of an afterthought. When people referred to rabies, they did so more as a euphemism than with any kind of concern that people could become infected.
With more cases will likely come more deaths than usual, making this a crucial time period. It is especially worrisome that scientists aren’t exactly sure why so many people are contracting the disease after such a long time of it not happening. The message from New York is a start and will hopefully help to make people aware of the situation.