A Fresno County resident has died from rabies, apparently contracted from a bat bite. This is the first such death in the county in more than 30 years.
Joe Prado, deputy director of the county’s Department of Public Health, said during a Zoom media conference Tuesday that information about the individuals, including name, age and gender, is not being released due to patient confidentiality laws.
Prado said the person works in Merced County and contracted rabies while there in mid-October, but it is unclear whether the person was working at the time of the contact. Officials said the person appeared to have contracted the virus from an encounter with a bat.
The individual showed symptoms of rabies and was treated in the Fresno County Hospital emergency room on Nov. 18, where he died on Friday.
“It was a very short period of time, but the results were decent,” Prado said.
The county was also assessing the risk of exposure for people in the hospital where the patient was treated and in the patient’s home. Prado said rabies vaccines are being distributed as needed.
“At this time, we want to make sure the community knows that all hospital systems are working together to ensure adequate vaccine supply,” he said.
Rabies is a disease that affects the brain and is rarely seen in humans, with the last such case in Fresno County occurring in 1992, said Fresno County Deputy Health Officer Dr. Trinidad Solis.
Solis said rabies is transmitted through saliva, most likely through the bite of an infected creature.
“Unfortunately, there is no cure for rabies,” Solis said. “This means that once symptoms develop, there is no treatment, and once symptoms develop, they are often fatal.”
Solis said prevention is key, including vaccinating pets and taking precautions around wildlife, especially known vectors such as bats, foxes and skunks.
Unusual animal behavior, such as bats flying during the day or normally timid animals interacting with humans, is often a sign of an infectious disease.
Solis said if you think you may have been scratched or bitten, you should wash the area with soap and water and go to a health care provider right away.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that fewer than 10 people die from rabies each year in the United States. Five people died from rabies in 2021.
Merced County health officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The safety of the bat suspect is also unknown.
The Merced County Health Department posted a warning on the CDC’s social media sites Monday about the dangers of rabies.
According to the California Department of Health Services, the state has recorded 169 cases of rabies in animals this year, with nearly a quarter (41) in Los Angeles County.
By comparison, Merced and Fresno counties combined have had three cases so far this year, according to state data.
Source link
