A UK woman died from rabies after a minor scratch by a stray puppy in Morocco, underscoring the often-overlooked danger of animal contact.
United States: A Yorkshire woman has died of rabies that was contracted after a visit to Morocco, where she had contact with a stray dog, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).
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In Yorkshire and Humber, Yvonne Ford of Barnsley, South Yorkshire, was diagnosed after she returned to the UK in February on a visit to the North African country.
According to a Facebook post, where Ford’s daughter Robyn Thomson said her mother had become infected after being “scratched very slightly by a puppy,” the Guardian reported.
“At the time, she did not think any harm would come of it and didn’t think much of it,” as Thomson noted.
“Two weeks ago, she became ill, starting with a headache, which resulted in her losing her ability to walk, talk, sleep, swallow,” she added.
Furthermore, Thomson, who mentioned that her mother died soon afterward, warned people about the dangers of rabies.
“We never thought something like this could happen to someone we love,” she noted.
“Please take animal bites seriously, vaccinate your pets, and educate those around you,” she continued.
Ford and her daughter Robyn Thomson wrote in a Facebook post that her mother had been infected after being scratched, and this was just slightly by a puppy.
The UKHSA reported that there was no danger to the wider population since no evidence was found on the possibility of passing rabies between people.
Nonetheless, to prevent it, it was evaluating health workers and close contacts as a precautionary measure in order to provide vaccination when needed.
Rabies is a fatal virus transmitted through the saliva of infected animals, and humans normally get affected by it when bitten.
Some of the animals that may be infected include cows, cats, and foxes, although in some countries, stray dogs are most likely to expose humans to rabies, as the Guardian reported.
After someone exhibits the signs and symptoms of rabies, the infection is almost always lethal, though an immediate treatment of the injury following the bite can avoid mortality.
Initially, the symptoms may resemble that of flu, but later, fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, agitation, anxiety, difficulty in swallowing, and increased saliva follow.
This is the seventh instance this millennium that a UK citizen has tested positive for rabies, having been exposed to an infected animal.
In all cases, a person was infected outside of the country.
In the UK, rabies does not exist in wild or domestic animals and, with the exception of instances connected with persons being bitten by bats, which may carry a virus like rabies, there is no known instance of a person in the UK becoming infected by an animal other than a bat since 1902.