Rabies

Symptoms

• Anxiety, stress, and tension
• Drooling
• Convulsions
• Exaggerated sensation at the bite site
• Excitability
• Loss of feeling in an area of the body
• Loss of muscle function
• Low-grade fever (102 degrees F or lower)
• Muscle spasms
• Numbness and tingling
• Pain at the site of the bite
• Positive Babinski's reflex
• Restlessness
• Swallowing difficulty (drinking produces spasms of the larynx) or swallowing difficulty with liquids only

Exams and Tests

If an animal bites you, try to gather as much information about the animal as possible. Call your local animal control authorities to safely capture the animal. If rabies is suspected, the animal will be watched for signs of rabies.

A special test called immunofluorescence is used to look at the brain tissue after an animal is dead. This test can reveal whether or not the animal had rabies.

The same test can be used to check for rabies in humans, using a piece of skin from the neck. Doctors may also look for the rabies virus in your saliva or spinal fluid.

References

Marx J. Rosen’s Emergency Medicine: Concepts and Clinical Practice. 5th ed. St. Louis, Mo: Mosby; 2002:1837-1838.

Stantic-Pavlinic M. Public health concerns in bat rabies across Europe. Euro Surveill. 2005;10(11):217-220.

Brookes SM, Aegerter JN, Smith GC. European bat lyssavirus in Scottish bats. Emerg Infect Dis. 2005;11(4):572-578.

Cohen J, Powderly WG. Infectious Diseases. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Elsevier; 2004:1503-1506.

McLellan SL. Vaccine special issues: yellow fever, rabies, and Japanese encephalitis. Clin Fam Pract. 2005;7:697-716.

Marx J. Rosen's Emergency Medicine: Concepts and Clinical Practice. 6th ed. St. Louis, Mo: Mosby; 2006.