Survival of a newborn from a pregnant woman with rabies infection

Abstract

BackgroundRabies is very common in People’s Republic of China. Each year thousands of people die because of this disease, but rabies diagnosed in pregnancy is very rare.Case PresentationIn this study, we report the case of a pregnant woman who was infected with the rabies virus after a dog bite. The symptoms of rabies appeared in labor and she died after pregnancy. Her baby and husband did not develop the disease.ConclusionThe phenomenon that the newborn infant was healthy may be related to the protective role of placenta in resisting the invasion of the rabies virus or the absence of systemic viremia. The prompt administration of vaccines and anti-rabies immunoglobulin to the infant may have also contributed to his survival.

Rabies Vaccine Hesitancy and Deaths Among Pregnant and Breastfeeding Women — Vietnam, 2015–2016

“…A growing body of literature documents peripartum rabies cases. Including the six cases reported here, case reports and a literature review found 20 documented probable or suspected peripartum rabies cases reported during the 114-year period, 1902–2016 ( 8 , 9 ). A total of 17 neonates survived, and were reported to be healthy, including eight who did not receive vaccine or immunoglobulin after caesarean or vaginal delivery ( 8 ).…”

Rabies Neglected Modes of Transmission in Pakistan

“…Intrauterine transmission is the spread of the rabies virus from mother to fetus via the placenta (Qu et al, 2016). Even though rabies is rare to transmit through the intrauterine route, a few cases reported and described raise the possibility (Scheidegger 1953).…”