[Types of rabies vaccines which were locally injected to the subjects bitten by animals abroad].
In recent years there have been a number of subjects who were bitten by supposed rabid animals in foreign rabies-epizootic countries and visited our hospital to received post-exposure therapy after their return to Japan. WHO recommends immediate washing of the wound with soap and water, application of human anti-rabies immunoglobulin and administration of tissue-culture rabies vaccine at 0, 3, 7, 14, 30, and 90 days after exposure. However, tissue-culture vaccines, are expensive and they are not always used in all parts of the world. The author checked whether the victims of animal bite were injected with rabies vaccines abroad or not and investigated the type of rabies vaccine when they were vaccinated. About a half of the consulted victims were locally injected with rabies vaccine. By mean of certificates of inoculation or empty boxes of vaccine, types of rabies vaccines were proved in 40 subjects of which 38 received tissue-culture vaccines. Sample-type vaccine was administered to one subject and suckling mouse vaccine was done to another one. When post-exposure prophylaxis was continued after return to Japan, it is important to know the sort of rabies vaccine injected abroad, because brain-tissue vaccines are less effective in inducing antibody than tissue-culture vaccines. Consequently both physicians and travelers should keep in mind that even now brain-tissue vaccines are used in some areas of the world.
Takayama
N
N
Tokyo Metropolitan Komagome Hospital.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001733:Bites and Stings; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011818:Rabies / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000635:transmission; D011819:Rabies Vaccines / Q000145:classification; D014195:Travel
D011819:Rabies Vaccines