By Muhammad Qasim
The anti-rabies section at the PIMS Satellite Hospital in National Institute of Health, Islamabad, Thursday received three dog-bite cases, including six-year-old girl Sonya.
The three victims were taken to the NIH from Beval, Changa Bagial in Gujar Khan where a stray dog suspected to have rabies had bitten as many as nine persons of which six have so far reported at none of the healthcare facilities for proper treatment.
“The three victims including six-year-old Sonya and 72-year-old Zarda Bibi received category-III wounds in result of the dog bite,” said incharge at the anti-rabies section at the NIH Dr Shahab Akhtar Qazi while talking to ‘The News’ Thursday adding according to eye witnesses, six other victims who have not reported at any healthcare facility as yet have also received severe wounds and need proper treatment. The dog bit Sonya at right thigh and abdomen.
“I advised attendants of the three victims to purchase tissue culture (anti-rabies) vaccine and anti-rabies serum, Rabies Immune Globulin (RIG) from open market that would be administered to the victims as an ideal treatment,” said Dr Kazi adding he had administered RIG along with first dose of TCV to the victims that was brought from open market by attendants of the victims.
He said that in category III of dog bite cases, in which blood oozes out of the wound, RIG must be administered to a victim. Category III means single or multiple transdermal bites or scratches that are contamination of mucous membrane with animal’s saliva, licks. “I did not advise them to follow the 14-injection sheep brain (sample type) anti-rabies vaccine course for the treatment which is available free of cost to patients at government healthcare facilities,” he said while responding to a query.
To a query, he said that the victims and their attendants informed him that the dog has not yet been killed. “In case of human exposure to animals that are suspected to have rabies, immediate attempts should be made to identify, capture or kill the animal involved,” he said.
He said that in rabid-dog bite case, an adult patient requires 10 ml of RIG that costs around Rs31,000 from open market. “Incubation period of rabies varies widely, from four days to several years but general medical practitioners do not take this fact into consideration,” he said adding all the nine victims should have taken ideal treatment to avoid rabies.