Everything about Rabies - Research Paper Example

Rabies Humans contract diverse kinds of diseases depending on an interplay of various factors. Illness is the result of a disease or injury that affects functioning, and occurs when there is an inability to meet one’s needs. Due to the complicated factors encompassing the etimiology of an illness, health care practitioners need to design a holistic approach to understand means for intervention and prevention. In this regard, this essay aims to focus on rabies, including its definition, etiology, risk factors, mechanism of the problem, signs and symptoms, secondary complications, prognosis, and prevention management. Definition Different health organizations define rabies according to their respective perspectives. The Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDCP, 2010) define rabies as a “preventable viral disease of mammals most often transmitted through the bite of a rabid animal” (par. 1). The World Health Organization (WHO, 2010) states its meaning as “a zoonotic disease (a disease that is transmitted to humans from animals) that is caused by a virus” (par. 1). While the Mayo Clinic (Mayo Foundation, 2010) avers that “rabies is a deadly virus spread to people from the saliva of infected animals. The rabies virus is usually transmitted through a bite” (par. 1). Integrating these definitions, rabies is found to be a deadly but preventable disease caused by a virus transmitted to humans through the saliva of infected animals. The animals clearly identified to contain the dreaded virus range from raccoons, bats, skunks, foxes, cats and dogs, among others. Etiology As indicated in the definition, rabies is caused by a virus (of the genus Lyssavirus and family Rhabdoviridae) contracted through a bite from an infected animal. According to Fisher (2008, par. 9), “when the rabies virus enters muscles, it replicates locally and is then transported through peripheral sensory nerves to the spinal ganglia, where it replicates and travels up the spinal cord to the brain. The virus migrates to the gray matter of the brain and predominates in the neurons of the limbic system, midbrain, and hypothalamus. Efferent nerves transport virus to the acinar glands of the submaxillary salivary glands, where it achieves high concentration”. Risk Factors People who live in rural areas are most at risk in contracting rabies. Children, most especially, those who play in the streets are at a higher risk of being bitten by stray dogs. Further, medical practitioners, such as veterinarians and wildlife researchers or specialists, need to be vaccinated to prevent transmission of the dreaded virus, in cases of animal bites. According to the report published by WHO (2010), “people most at risk of rabies live in rural areas of Africa and Asia. An estimated 31 000 people die from dog rabies in Asia each year. Poor people, especially children, are at highest risk of dog rabies. About 30% to 60% of the victims of dog bites (the primary mode of virus transmission) are children less than 15 years of age. Children often play with animals and are less likely to report bites or scratches” (pars. 6 & 7). Mechanism of the Problem The transmission of the virus begins when an infected animal bites another uninfected one. The CDCP clearly explains the path of the virus, to wit: “after the virus has reached the brain and multiplied there to cause an inflammation of the brain, it moves from the brain to the salivary glands and saliva. Also at this time, after the virus has multiplied in the brain, almost all animals begin to show the first signs of rabies. Most of these signs are obvious to even an untrained observer, but within a short period of time, usually within 3 to 5 days, the virus has caused enough damage to the brain that the animal begins to show unmistakable signs of rabies” (CDCP: Tranmission, 2010, pars. 3 & 4). Signs and Symptoms The initial symptoms of individuals to have contracted rabies are as follows: fever, headache, and fatigue. These signs could be mistaken for ordinary illnesses as manifested in common symptoms. As the virus continue to progress, the following set of symptoms appear: agitation, anxiety, confusion, difficulty in swallowing, excessive secretion of saliva, hydrophobia, hallucinations, insomnia, and even paralysis (Mayo Foundation, 2010). Secondary Complications Fisher (2008) enumerated secondary complications to rabies, as follows: “other encephalitides (especially herpes simplex encephalitis because it is treatable; Guillain-Barré syndrome, transverse myelitis, and poliomyelitis (patients may present with similar paralytic features); tetanus (rigidity of tetanus contractions is more prolonged, with mental status usually normal); epilepsy; poisoning with atropinelike compounds; and pseudohydrophobia (hysterical reaction to animal bites)” (Fisher: Differential Diagnosis and Work-up, 2008, par. 1). Prognosis When bitten by a rabid animal, both the individual bitten and the animal must be subjected to different tests. For the animal, the test required to confirm the presence of the virus antigens in the brain tissue is called the “direct fluorescent antibody (DFA) test” (CDCP: Diagnosis, 2010, par. 1). Should the animal turn out not to be rabid, several laboratory examinations would confirm if additional tests are necessary or required. Otherwise, if the animal is positive for the virus, for humans, different tests are critical to confirm the extent of contracting the disease. These tests are as follows: histologic examination, immunohistochemistry, electron microspy, and amplification methods (CDCP: Diagnosis, 2010). Preventable Management The most viable means of preventing contracting rabies is to follow the recommendations enumerated by Mayo Foundation (2010): (1) vaccinate and confine household pets; (2) report stray dogs and cats to local authorities; (3) stay out of wild animals, including bats; and (4) consider administration of rabies vaccine prior to travelling through professional advice. Since the root cause of the disease is being bitten by a rabid animal, the safest measure to prevent contracting it is to ensure that household pets are properly vaccinated and kept secure in one’s domain. If, despite the precautions, individuals were found to have been bitten by a prospective rabid animal, the following measures must be undertaken: For individuals who were not vaccinated with rabies vaccine, postexposure prophylaxis is required by: thorough cleaning of the bitten area with soap and water, “human rabies immune globulin (HRIG): Administer 20 IU/kg with the full dose infiltrated at the wound and any remaining volume administered IM gluteally or at another other anatomic site distant from the site of vaccine administration; and vaccine: Administer HDCV, RVA, or RabAvert at 1 mL IM (deltoid or thigh) on days 0, 3, 7, 14, and 28” (Fisher: Treatment, 2008). Conclusion As initially emphasized, rabies is a preventable disease requiring prompt and appropriate health care. With the relevant information proffered in this discourse, readers are made aware of the factors which encompass its etiology to prevention. The essay is most aptly concluded by Ehret (2009, par. 1) who averred that “all the phases of the process of development of the medical science, including those of the earliest periods of civilization, have in their way of understanding the causal nature of diseases that one thing in common that the diseases, owing to external causes, enter into the human body and thus, by force of a necessary or at least unavoidable law, disturb it in its existence, cause it pain and at last destroy it”. By according one with the holistic approach in understanding the underlying medical concepts related to rabies, a more profound and comprehensive awareness would hopefully prevent individuals in contracting this disease in the future. References Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDCP). (2010). Rabies. Retrieved 21 April 2010. < http://www.cdc.gov/rabies/> -------------------------. (2010). Rabies: Diagnosis. Retrieved 21 April 2010. < http://www.cdc.gov/rabies/diagnosis/index.html> --------------------------. (2010). Rabies: Transmission. Retrieved 21 April 2010. < http://www.cdc.gov/rabies/transmission/body.html> Ehret, A. (2009). The Common Fundamental Cause in the Nature of Diseases. Retrieved 20 April 2010. Fisher, D.J. (2008). Rabies: Overview. Retrieved 20 April 2010. ------------------. (2008). Rabies: Differential Diagnosis and Work-up. Retrieved 20 April 2010. -----------------. (2008). Rabies: Treatment. Retrieved 20 April 2010. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2010). Rabies. Retrieved 21 April 2010. < http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/rabies/DS00484/DSECTION=symptoms> World Health Organization (WHO). (2010). Rabies. Retrieved 21 April 2010. < http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs099/en/> Read More