Epidemiological management of rabies in Romania

Abstract

Discussion Domestic animals, particularly cats, appear to be a major cause of rabies transmission to humans. Therefore, vaccination after cat bites should be taken into account. There is stringent need for specific measures to increase the awareness regarding the problem. People should be educated that cats in rural areas or in the vicinity of forests pose the same level of risk as dogs or wild animals.Conclusion There is need for a new strategy regarding the prevention of animal rabies and its transmission to humans. Proper surveillance systems and continuous monitoring for the disease in wildlife and cities is of utmost importance and should be continued, together with the programs for vaccination of stray dogs and foxes in order to eliminate rabies infection.

Epidemiology of Tropical Neglected Diseases in Ecuador in the Last 20 Years

“…In several parts of the world the control of rabies has been successful. In Romania after the outbreak in 2008 the number of cases of rabies reported has been decreasing, with just 6 cases reported between 2008–2012 [ 36 ]. In Poland, in 1993 the implementation of the oral vaccination of wild animals was introduced.…”

First Report on the Efficiency of Oral Vaccination of Foxes against Rabies in Serbia

“…Epizootic situation in Serbia depends mainly on the situation in neighbouring countries. The majority of rabid foxes in Serbia are detected near borders to Romania, Bulgaria and Bosnia and Herzegovina, where rabies has endemic characteristics (Najar and Streinu‐Cercel, ; Ilieva, ; Tošić et al., ). The highest risk of disease spreading was reported in 2008, when 233 rabies cases were identified.…”

“…With the initiation of ORV of foxes in 2010 in Serbia, the number of positive rabies cases in domestic animals decreased rapidly. Cases of humans attacked by rabid cats and dogs were also reported in Romania and Bulgaria, but incidence of human attacks was reduced after implementation of ORV of foxes (Najar and Streinu‐Cercel, ; Ilieva, ).…”

Rabies in Romania – Editorial Comment

“…7 There is obvious need for the eradication of animal rabies, which can be accomplished, at least in part, through the program for oral vaccination of foxes, as described by Muller et al 8 Meanwhile, measures should be taken to limit the transmission of rabies to humans and to domestic animals such as cats and dogs in rural areas or in the vicinity of forests, through informing the population in rural areas on the need to seek medical advice after animal bites and through offering easier access to healthcare (shorter distances to hospitals or clinics, transportation systems, etc). Another interesting aspect of the epidemiology of human rabies in Romania, as pointed out by Najar et al, 6 is that one third of the cases were associated with rabid cat bites. This should raise an alarm signal, particularly since the general view on rabies is that the highest risks are associated with wild animals or stray dog bites.…”

“…2 One fatal case of human rabies in Australia presented an incubation of 27 months after a fruit bat bite 3 and a number of other cases in endemic areas reported longer, less plausible incubation periods, 2 up to 20 years. 4,5 The high number of human cases reported by Najar et al 6 in this issue of GERMS brings into the spotlight a quite stringent problem, that of endemic rabies. According to the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) reports, since 2005, all cases of rabies in the European Union have been imported from countries such as India, the Philippines, Morocco, French Guyana or Kenya, except for the Romanian cases.…”