Epidemiological characteristics of human rabies in Henan province in China from 2005 to 2013.
BACKGROUND
Rabies is very common in People's Republic of China. Henan province, in the central portion of China, is one of the most densely populated provinces in the entire country. With the new rabies epidemic trend noted in northern and western China, it is necessary to investigate the characteristics of human rabies in this area and control the disease.


METHODS
We chose patients in hospital isolation in 18 municipalities in Henan province as the investigation subjects. Data were collected through systematic reporting from these hospitals, whereas a questionnaire was applied to the relatives of patients.


RESULTS
A total of 1022 rabies cases were reported. The incidence of human rabies in Henan has increased rapidly since 2005, having peaked in 2007, and maintained a high level in the remaining years. The cases were found mainly in rural areas in the south and east of the province. Rabies was often noted in summer and with the highest number in August. Most cases were noted in males and often in farmers. The patients aged between 40 and 60 years accounted for 36.8 % of all the cases. The wound treatment rate (12.2 %) and vaccination rate (2.6 %) of rabies cases after exposure were relatively low, while the rabies immunoglobulin utilization rate was only 2.8 %.


CONCLUSIONS
Rabies epidemic cases at the county level overall were increasing in Henan province during the period of 2005-2013; the epidemic has spread quickly. The data in this study imply that the disease could be better managed by more integrated surveillance across human health and veterinary sectors, improved education and better government policies.
Department of Medical Statistic and Epidemiology, School of Public Health Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, 74 Zhongshan Road II, Guangzhou, 510080 Guangdong China ; Department of Immunology, Zhengzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Zhengzhou, Henan China.
Guo Wei
GW
Li
Department of Anatomy, Henan Medical College, Zhengzhou, Henan China.
Qiao Ge
QG
Chen
Department of Pathogenic Biology and Immunology, Luohe Medical College, Luohe, Henan China.
Zhen Yu
ZY
Qu
Department of Medical Statistic and Epidemiology, School of Public Health Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, 74 Zhongshan Road II, Guangzhou, 510080 Guangdong China.
Yao
Y
Xia
Department of Pathology, Menzies Health Institute Queensland, Griffith University, Gold Coast, QLD Australia.
Alfred
A
Lam
Department of Medical Statistic and Epidemiology, School of Public Health Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, 74 Zhongshan Road II, Guangzhou, 510080 Guangdong China.
Ding Mei
DM
Zhang
Department of Medical Statistic and Epidemiology, School of Public Health Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, 74 Zhongshan Road II, Guangzhou, 510080 Guangdong China.
Jia Hai
JH
Lu
Dog bite; Epidemiology; Human rabies; Zoonosis