World Rabies Day message: “Register and vaccinate you dogs”

By Philippine Information Agency (PIA 8)
September 22, 2011

TACLOBAN CITY  –  The Department of Health Region Center for Health Development in Eastern Visayas is set to spearhead the commemoration of World Rabies Day on September 28.

DOH Region 8 Director Edgardo Gonzaga said that the highlight this year’s celebration in Eastern Visayas is the Mass Dog Vaccination at the Barangay Hall or Basketball Court in the respective cities and municipalities in the six provinces of the Region.

Director Gonzaga said that the objective of the activity is to vaccinate at least 70 to 80 percent of the total dog population of every municipality.

The theme for this year, “Register and Vaccinate your dogs,” underscores the importance of registration and vaccination of all dogs as a crucial key in controlling the incidence of rabies in the Philippines and reducing the number of resulting deaths.

With over 700 Filipinos seeking emergency treatment for dog bites each day last year, dogs are clearly the primary source of rabies in the country, according to latest records from the Department of Health (DOH).

Less known to the public is that 88 percent of rabies infection is acquired from pet dogs, shattering the myth that stray dogs are the primary source of rabies transmission.

Official count of incidence of dog bites reached roughly 266,000 last year, resulting in 257 deaths due to rabies infection, the DOH National Rabies Prevention Control Program said.

Separate records obtained from the DOH also showed that from January to May 21 this year, the health agency has so far monitored 76 deaths due to rabies, with Central Luzon registering the highest number with 13 fatalities. Almost 50 percent of these cases affected children aged 5 to 14.

Still not very many are aware that the incubation period or the time for the infection to develop, for rabies can be as short as a few days, but can also last as long as five years.  About 95 percent of people who have been infected by a rabid animal, however, develop the disease within one year.

The tragedy is that once a patient starts to show symptoms, there is no treatment and he or she usually dies within 10 days.

People also need to be made aware that transmission is not only limited to actual animal bites.  Anyone handling a dead animal that has acquired the virus can be infected if they touch their eyes or lips if they have traces of the animal’s fluids on their hands.

Dispelling myths about rabies can also help reduce incidences of deaths due to the deadly virus. Many people still believe that rabies should be handled by traditional healers using folk medicine such as “tandok,” which is done by placing a deer horn over the wound.  Such procedure is believed to suck out the rabies virus from the injury.

Health records have shown that patients who received “tandok” treatment died either of rabies or tetanus. Dog bites must always be seen by a medical expert.

Rabies is a viral disease in mammals which animals and people can get through exposure to saliva or nervous tissue of a rabid animal. It spreads from the exposure site through the nervous system to the brain, eventually causing death if not immediately treated with medical care.

More than 55,000 people die from rabies each year, mostly in Africa and Asia where little medical care exists. The largest source of rabies in humans around the world is due to uncontrolled rabies in dogs, and children are most at risk for being bitten.