11-Year-Old Boy Dies of Rabies Weeks After Waking Up With Bat on His Face
11-Year-Old Boy Dies of Rabies Weeks After Waking Up With Bat on His Face – An 11-year-old boy in Ontario, Canada, has died from rabies just 19 days after waking up to find a bat lying across his nose and mouth, despite showing no visible bite or scratch marks.
According to a report published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), the child later developed symptoms associated with rabies, including vomiting, facial tingling and numbness.
He was taken to hospital, where he received supportive treatment. However, rabies has no known cure once symptoms begin to appear.
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The boy’s parents agreed to share his story to raise awareness about the deadly disease. The case marks Ontario’s first rabies-related death in more than 50 years.
Health experts hope the report will help prevent similar fatalities by encouraging people to seek medical attention immediately after any direct contact with bats.
Rabies is almost always fatal once symptoms develop, but infection can be prevented through prompt post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), which includes rabies vaccinations and immune globulin injections.
Dr. Brian Hummel, a paediatric infectious disease specialist at McMaster Children’s Hospital and McMaster University, stressed the importance of seeking medical advice following any contact with bats.
“Any direct human contact with a bat – even in the absence of a visible bite or scratch – is an indication for PEP and should be discussed with public health authorities,” he said.
“This is especially important to consider as we approach the summer months, when human-bat encounters are at their peak.”
He added: “Bats may or may not show classic signs of rabies; hence, any direct human contact with a bat is considered high risk.”
Dr. Hummel urged anyone who may have been exposed to potentially rabid animals to seek urgent medical attention.
“Rabies is almost always fatal, with no established efficacious therapies, making prevention crucial,” he said.
“Rabies PEP is highly effective if administered promptly, in consultation with public health authorities, after any direct human contact with a bat, even in the absence of visible lesions.”
He also advised healthcare workers to ask patients with neurological symptoms about any recent exposure to potentially rabid animals.
