Etiology and diagnosis of rabies

Causes of rabies:

1. Rabies virus mainly exists in the brain tissue and spinal cord of sick dogs. There are also a large number of viruses in the salivary glands and saliva of sick dogs, and they are excreted with the saliva.

2. The virus can be contained in the saliva of the sick dog 10-15 days before the clinical symptoms appear and 6-7 months after the symptoms disappear. Therefore, when the animal is bitten by a sick animal, it can be infected.

3. The saliva of some healthy dogs and cats can also contain viruses. When they lick people or other animals, or live with people, they can also infect people.

4. After many wild animals, such as wolves, foxes, deer, bats, etc. are infected with this disease, they will not only get sick and die, but also expand the spread. For example, some species of bats (African vampire bats) often attack humans and animals after being infected with rabies virus, making them infected and diseased.

5. Air polluted by respiratory secretions and urine can also cause respiratory infections in humans and animals. Wild animals can be infected through the digestive tract by eating sick corpses.

Key points for the diagnosis of rabies:

The disease is usually in a sporadic form, that is, a single case occurs mostly, and most of them have a history of being bitten by mad animals. Generally, there are more cases in spring and summer, which is related to the sexual activities of dogs. The clinical features of rabies are as follows:

1. At the beginning of the disease, the main manifestations are mental depression, abnormal behavior, such as not listening to calls, preferring to hide in dark places, abnormal cravings, eating gravel, wood, soil and other things, sick dogs often lick the bites with their tongues.

2. Later, it develops into rage and restlessness, attacks people and animals, and often runs aimlessly. Appearance The sick dog gradually becomes thinner, the lower jaw droops, and the tail droops and is sandwiched between the two hind limbs. Hoarseness, increased salivation, difficulty swallowing.

3. In the later stage, the sick dog has symptoms of paralysis, difficulty in walking, and eventually systemic failure.