Background and Goals
Rabies remains a significant public health concern in Nepal, primarily transmitted through dog bites. Despite efforts to control the disease through vaccination and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), human rabies deaths persist. This study aimed to assess the burden of canine-mediated human rabies in Nepal over 10 years (2008–2017) by analyzing dog bite cases, PEP usage, and human rabies mortality.
Materials and Methods
Data were retrospectively collected from Sukraraj Tropical Hospital in Kathmandu, Nepal, covering the years 2008 to 2017. The study examined the number of dog bite incidents, PEP doses administered, and human rabies deaths. Statistical analyses were conducted to identify trends and correlations among these variables.
Results
- Dog Bite Incidents: A total of 252,297 dog bite cases were reported over the study period, averaging 2,102 cases per month.
- PEP Administration: An average of 36,995 PEP doses were administered annually.
- Human Rabies Deaths: There were 482 recorded human rabies deaths, averaging 49 deaths per year.
- Correlation: A negative correlation was observed between PEP usage and human rabies mortality, suggesting that increased PEP administration may reduce fatalities.
- Trends: While PEP usage increased over time, the number of dog bites and rabies deaths remained high, indicating challenges in controlling the disease.
Conclusion
The study highlights the persistent burden of canine-mediated human rabies in Nepal, despite increased PEP usage. The findings suggest that factors such as inadequate stray dog population management and surveillance systems contribute to the continued high incidence of rabies. The authors recommend implementing mass vaccination and population management programs for stray dogs to effectively reduce the country’s rabies burden.
Keywords
Dog bite, Epidemiology, Post-exposure prophylaxis, Rabies, Nepal
References
Pal, P., Shimoda, H., Bashyal, R., Yawongsa, A., & Rukkwamsuk, T. (2021). A retrospective study on dog bite associated rabies in human and the use of post-exposure prophylaxis in Nepal during 2008 to 2017. World Veterinary Journal, 11(2), 181–186.
World Health Organization. (2021). Rabies fact sheet. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/rabies
Copyright
Pal et al. (2021). This article is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated. You can view the original case study here: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/355761714_A_Retrospective_Study_on_Dog_Bite_Associated_Rabies_in_Human_and_the_Use_of_Postexposure_Prophylaxis_in_Nepal_during_2008_to_2017
Disclaimer
This lesson paraphrases and adapts content from the original research by Pal et al. (2021). All rights to the original publication remain with the authors and journal. This material is intended solely for educational and teaching purposes. Any commercial use or reproduction of the original work without permission is prohibited.
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