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A ProMED-mail post
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
Date: Sun 11 Jan 2009
Source: Shavedlongcock.blogspot.com [edited]
The discovery of a rabid bat in the Lincoln Square neighborhood prompted
the city late on Saturday [10 Jan 2008] to issue a warning against any
contact with bats or other wild animals. On Wed 7 Jan 2009, a house cat
discovered the bat in an apartment near Lawrence and Western Avenues and
woke up a man and woman in the dwelling, according to the Chicago
Department of Public Health. The couple saw the bat lying on the floor and
trapped it with a bucket, and then called staff from Chicago Animal Care
and Control to remove it.
Analysis of the bat's carcass this week by the Illinois Department of
Public Health showed the bat had rabies, and, as a precaution, the man and
the woman are undergoing medical treatment, a series of 5 vaccinations
spread out over a 28 day period. "Rabies should never, under any
circumstances, be taken lightly," CDPH [Chicago Department of Public
Health] commissioner Terry Mason said in a release sent Saturday [10 Jan
2008] night. "This is a deadly viral disease that attacks the nervous
system. There is no effective treatment for rabies once symptoms have
started. At that point, it is fatal." But a rabies infection can be
prevented with early treatment, "so that makes it vitally important that
anyone exposed to a bat seek medical care right away," he said.
People can get rabies from the bite of an infected warm-blooded animal,
such as a bat, raccoon, skunk, coyote, feral cat, or domestic animals. In a
typical year, about 2 or 3 rabid bats are detected in the city, according
to the CDPH. People who find a bat in their house should immediately leave
the room where the bat is, close the door behind them and call 911.
communicated by:
ProMED-Mail rapporteur Susan Baekeland
[The species of the bat and fate of the cat are not disclosed. - Mod.CP]
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