title: Animal bites, active and reserve components, U.S. Armed Forces, 2001-2010.
abstract: From 2001 to 2010, there were 20,522 diagnoses of animal bites among U.S. military members. Of these, 643 (3.1%) were documented during medical encounters in combat theater. The majority of bites were "dog bites" and occurred more in males, soldiers, and those in infantry and law enforcement occupations. A small proportion of animal bites received documentation of exposure to or post-exposure prophylaxis for rabies virus. Animal bite avoidance and rabies education should be reinforced before members travel or deploy to areas highly endemic for rabies.
authors: Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center, (MCAF-CS) Silver Spring, MD 20904, USA.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D001733:Bites and Stings / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008889:Military Personnel; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D011159:Population Surveillance; D011818:Rabies / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000635:transmission; D011819:Rabies Vaccines; D051381:Rats; D012307:Risk Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D011819:Rabies Vaccines