Islamabad [Pakistan], September 28 : An estimated 1,000 people, mostly children, die every year from rabies, despite the availability of life-saving treatment, Dawn News reported on Sunday.
Mohammad Irfan Habib, Medical Director, ChildLife Foundation, told Dawn that rabies is an acute tragedy in Pakistan's rural and low-income communities, as the children there are frequently bitten by stray dogs. With delayed or inaccessible treatment, preventable deaths take place.
"The tragedy is particularly acute in Pakistan's rural and low-income communities, where children are frequently bitten by stray dogs while playing or walking to school. Delayed or inaccessible post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) often leads to preventable deaths," he said as per Dawn.
"Rabies does not have to claim lives; it is 100% preventable if the right steps are taken immediately," he said.
"Every parent and caregiver must know the lifesaving steps: wash dog-bite wounds with soap and water for at least 15 minutes, seek emergency care without delay, and complete the vaccination schedule," added Dr. Habib in his remarks to Dawn.
According to the World Health Organisation, Rabies is a vaccine-preventable, zoonotic, viral disease affecting the central nervous system. In up to 99% of human rabies cases, dogs are responsible for virus transmission. Children between the age of 5 and 14 years are frequent victims.
WHO further reported that Rabies spreads to people and animals via saliva, usually through bites, scratches, or direct contact with mucosa (e.g. eyes, mouth, or open wounds). Once clinical symptoms appear, rabies is virtually 100% fatal.
According to the World Health Organisation, the incubation period for rabies is typically 2-3 months, but may vary from one week to one year, depending on factors such as the location of virus entry and the viral load. Initial symptoms of rabies include generic signs like fever, pain and unusual or unexplained tingling, pricking, or burning sensations at the wound site. As the virus moves to the central nervous system, progressive and fatal inflammation of the brain and spinal cord develops.
WHO noted how the global cost of rabies is estimated to be around USD 8.6 billion per year, including lost lives and livelihoods, medical care and associated costs, as well as uncalculated psychological trauma.
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