Durban - A PRE-SCHOOLER, who died from human rabies last month, was the first report of human rabies in 2021.
The two-year-old boy from eNgonyameni, near uMlazi, sustained a head injury while playing with a dog during the last week of January 2021.
He was taken to hospital but he was reportedly not given rabies post exposure prophylaxis (PEP), said the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) in their February Communiqué.
“Purportedly, the dog died. The boy was admitted to a hospital on February 10 with fever, nausea, vomiting, tiredness, muscle spasms, hypersalivation, hydrophobia, confusion, agitation, hyperactivity and aggressive behaviour, and died the following day. A single saliva sample, collected before the patient died, tested positive on rabies RT–PCR,” the NICD said.
Although only one laboratory-confirmed human rabies case has been recorded in South Africa for 2021, there were a total of eight human rabies cases recorded in 2020.
KwaZulu-Natal recorded a bulk of the cases with six, followed by Limpopo with two cases.
Rabies statistics were calculated according to when the infection was acquired.
The NICD said the Covid-19 pandemic in the country affected the control and prevention of rabies. That meant dog owners and communities were less involved in getting their pets vaccinated.
They said vaccinating dogs and cats was the most important intervention in the control and prevention of rabies. The majority of human rabies cases in South Africa are linked to dog bites, therefore controlling the disease in these animals prevents the spread of the disease to humans.
Further, as Covid-19 has modified care seeking behaviour and access to health services, access to rabies PEP may also have been affected. Since there is no treatment for clinical rabies disease, rabies PEP is the only approach to the prevention of rabies infection once exposure has occurred.
According to the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, and the South African Veterinary Council, since the beginning of the year there were 33 confirmed rabies cases in animals.
Meanwhile, vaccination clinics would be held along the KZN south coast from today until March 5, between 8am and 11am, and 11.30am and 1.30pm, depending on the area where they will be based. Some of the areas include Athlone Park, eManzimtoti, Warner Beach, Winkelspruit and Illovu Beach.
For more information, pet owners can contact the state veterinary office on 031 328 9300 or Memoriah on 076 821 7638.
There will also be a vaccination drive in Macambini, between KwaDukuza and Richards Bay on the KZN north coast.
The vaccination drive will run from today until March 19.
For more information, pet owners can call KP Monnagatatwe on 076 971 1442 or K Lephogole on 076 953 2109.
Daily News