Of all the deadly diseases that can spread from mammals to humans, rabies is the most infamous. Cujo had it. Old Yeller had it. A squirrel in “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” had it. Unfortunately, this virus doesn’t only live in fiction. It kills at least 59,000 people a year and is present in over 150 countries. On that list is the U.S., which is seeing a nationwide surge in reported cases of human exposures to rabid or possibly rabid animals.
If left untreated, rabies is always fatal (both for animals and humans). On the bright side, it’s also 100 percent preventable. Typically, in the U.S., humans get vaccinated for rabies after suspected rabies exposure, but right now many of us are wondering: Can and should you get vaccinated against rabies just as a precaution? Is there any benefit in getting a preventative rabies vaccine? The simple answer is no. Getting a pre-exposure vaccine doesn’t protect you from contracting the disease, and if you have an encounter with an animal that might have rabies, you’ll still need to get follow up doses regardless.
Read Full Article: https://www.popsci.com/science/is-there-preventative-rabies-vaccine/
