Rabies: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 01:01, 9 June 2005

Revision as of 14:19, 12 June 2005

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== Transmission and symptoms ==

[[Image:Rabies_micrograph.jpg|thumb|250px|Micrograph with numerous rabies viruses (small dark-grey rod-like particles) and Negri bodies, larger cellular inclusions typical of Rabies infection]]

The stereotypical image of an infected ("rabid") animal is a "mad [[dog]]" foaming at the mouth, but [[cat]]s, [[ferret]]s, [[raccoon]]s, [[chipmunk]]s, [[skunk]]s, [[fox]]es and [[bat]]s also become rabid. [[Squirrel]]s, [[chipmunk]]s, other [[rodent]]s and [[rabbit]]s are very seldom infected, perhaps because they would not usually survive an attack by a rabid animal. Rabies may also present in a so-called 'paralytic' form, rendering the infected animal unnaturally quiet and withdrawn.

The virus is usually present in the [[saliva]] of a symptomatic rabid animal; the route of infection is nearly always by a bite. By causing the infected animal to be exceptionally aggressive, the virus ensures its transmission to the next host. Transmission has occurred via an [[aerosol]] through mucous membranes; transmission in this form may have happened in people exploring caves populated by rabid bats. Transmission from person to person is extremely rare, and can happen through [[organ transplant|transplant surgery]] (see below for recent cases), or even more rarely through bites or kisses.