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A ProMED-mail post
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
Date: Sat 24 Jan 2009
Source: O Globo Rio [in Portuguese, trans. & summ. Mod.JW, edited]
In late December 2008, a 70-year-old woman was bitten near the right
eye by a bat inside her house in the Fonte de Saudade district of Rio
de Janeiro, Brazil. Since then, she and her neighbors sleep with the
windows closed. At first she did not realize she had been bitten, but
after a few days the spot became inflamed and very itchy. Doctors
told her it was a bat bite and have been treating her with
anti-rabies serum and rabies and tetanus vaccines.
Another woman, aged 38, living in the Leblon district of the city,
said that last year [2008] she was bitten in the foot while sleeping
in her apartment, and bled profusely.
Professionals at the RioZoo Foundation said that vampire bats
(_Desmodus rotundus_) bite mammals, but that the commonest bat in Rio
is the fruit bat (_Artibeus lituratus_). The mountainous areas of
Alto da Boa Vista and Gavea [where there are forests and caves. -
Mod.JW] are other parts of Rio where bats have been known to attack
people.
They said that bat bites can lead to 3 types of disease: tetanus,
mild infections, and rabies. They recommend that if a bat enters a
room, the lights should be turned off and the windows left open so
that it can get out again. In case of a bat bite, the victim should
go to a health post to be treated with anti-rabies serum and rabies
and tetanus vaccines, and antibiotics.
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
[The initially painless bite inflicted on the 1st victim sounds like
a small insectivorous bat, which is unlikely to bite a human unless
it is rabid. The profusely bleeding wound on the foot of the 2nd is
characteristic of a vampire bat bite, and it is hoped that the victim
is also receiving the appropriate treatment, although not every
vampire bat is infected with rabies virus. Fruit bats are large and
very noticeable (see image below), and unlikely to have been involved
in these 2 cases, but can also transmit rabies if infected in the
roost.
Image of insectivorous bat (_Myotis_ sp.):
Image of a vampire bat (_Desmodus_):
Image of a fruit bat (_Artibeus_):
Rio de Janeiro can be located on the HealthMap/ProMED-mail interactive
map of Brazil at
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