Rabies surveillance in the United States during 1998.
Abstract: During 1998, 49 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico reported 7,961 cases of rabies in nonhuman animals and 1 case in a human being to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a decrease of 6.5% from 8,509 cases in nonhuman animals and 4 cases in human beings reported in 1997. More than 92% (7,358 cases) were in wild animals, whereas > 7.5% (603 cases) were in domestic species (compared with 93% in wild animals and 7% in domestic species in 1997). Decreases were evident in all of the major contributing species groups, with the exception of skunks and bats. The relative contributions of the major groups to the total reported for 1998 were reccoons (44.0%; 3,502 cases), skunks (28.5%; 2,272), bats (12.5%; 992), foxes (5.5%; 435), cats (3.5%; 282), cattle (1.5%; 116), and dogs (11.5%; 113). No further discernable westward extension of the epizootic of rabies in raccoons in Ohio was reported. Twelve of the 19 states enzootic for the raccoon variant of the rabies virus and the District of Columbia reported decreased numbers of cases of rabies during 1998, compared with 13 states and the District of Columbia that reported increases during 1997. Three states, Rhode Island (143.2%), Massachusetts (77.2%), and New Hampshire (69.4%), reported increases of > 50% during 1998, compared with totals reported for 1997. In Texas, the number of cases of rabies associated with enzootic canine variants of the rabies virus remained greatly diminished; however, overall totals of reported cases of rabies increased in Texas and 12 other states where skunks are the major terrestrial reservoir of rabies. At the national level, the total of 82 reported cases of rabies among horses and mules was greater than that reported for any year since 1981 (88 cases) and represented a 74.5% increase, compared with the total for 1997. The 992 cases of rabies reported in bats during 1998 were the greatest proportionate contribution by bats since 1990. Reported cases of rabies in cats (282), dogs (113), and cattle (116) decreased 6.0%, 10.3%, and 4.9%, respectively. One indigenously acquired case of rabies reported in a human being during 1998 was the result of infection with a rabies virus variant associated with silver-haired and eastern pipistrelle bats.
Publication Date: 1999-12-29 PubMed ID: 10613210
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- Journal Article
- Diagnosis
- Disease control
- Disease Diagnosis
- Disease Management
- Disease Outbreaks
- Disease Prevalence
- Disease Surveillance
- Disease Treatment
- Domestic Animals
- Epidemiology
- Equine Health
- Horses
- Infectious Disease
- Public Health
- Rabies
- Veterinary Medicine
- Veterinary Research
- Veterinary Science
- Virus
- Wildlife
- Zoonotic Diseases
Summary
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The article presents data from 1998 rabies surveillance carried out across the United States, after which researchers found a slight decrease in reported cases in non-human animals compared to the previous year. It breaks down the statistics amongst domestic and wild animals, noting an increase in reported cases in bats and skunks.
Rabies Surveillance Data
- The surveillance study marks a decrease of 6.5% in reported rabies cases in nonhuman animals in 1998 compared to 1997.
- The data were gathered from 49 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, detailing even the 1 case that was reported in a human being that year.
- The data revealed that over 92% (7,358 cases) occurred in wild animals, compared to over 7.5% (603 cases) in domestic species.
Breakdown Among Various Species
- Reported cases decreased amongst each of the major contributors, with the exception of skunks and bats.
- The prominent groups contributing to the total number of reported cases included – raccoons (44%; 3,502 cases), skunks (28.5%; 2,272), bats (12.5%; 992), foxes (5.5%; 435), cats (3.5%; 282), cattle (1.5%; 116), and dogs (11.5%; 113).
- The increase in cases amongst bats marked the greatest proportionate contribution by this species since 1990.
State-Wise Analysis
- Significant increases in reported cases (>50%) were observed in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire during 1998, compared to 1997 data.
- No evidence of further westward extension of the rabies epidemic in raccoons in Ohio was reported.
- In Texas, although cases associated with canine rabies variants were diminished significantly, overall increases in reported cases were due to cases in skunks, the major terrestrial reservoir of rabies in the state.
Rabies in Domestic animals and Humans
- Reported rabies cases in domestic animals – cats, dogs, and cattle – showed a decrease by 6%, 10.3%, and 4.9% respectively.
- A significant increase (74.5%) in reported cases among horses and mules was noted, marking the highest number since 1981.
- Only one indigenously acquired case of rabies was reported in a human in 1998, which was the result of infection with a variant of the rabies virus associated with silver-haired and eastern pipistrelle bats.
Cite This Article
APA
Krebs JW, Smith JS, Rupprecht CE, Childs JE.
(1999).
Rabies surveillance in the United States during 1998.
J Am Vet Med Assoc, 215(12), 1786-1798.
Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Viral and Rickettsial Zoonoses Branch, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Animals, Domestic
- Animals, Wild
- Canada / epidemiology
- Cats
- Cattle
- Chiroptera
- Disease Reservoirs
- Dogs
- Foxes
- Goats
- Horses
- Lagomorpha
- Mephitidae
- Mexico / epidemiology
- Puerto Rico / epidemiology
- Rabies / epidemiology
- Rabies / veterinary
- Raccoons
- Rodentia
- Seasons
- Sentinel Surveillance / veterinary
- Sheep
- Swine
- United States / epidemiology
Citations
This article has been cited 8 times.- Seetahal JFR, Vokaty A, Vigilato MAN, Carrington CVF, Pradel J, Louison B, Sauers AV, Roopnarine R, Arrebato JCG, Millien MF, James C, Rupprecht CE. Rabies in the Caribbean: A Situational Analysis and Historic Review. Trop Med Infect Dis 2018 Aug 20;3(3).
- Ding NZ, Xu DS, Sun YY, He HB, He CQ. A permanent host shift of rabies virus from Chiroptera to Carnivora associated with recombination. Sci Rep 2017 Mar 21;7(1):289.
- Elmgren LD, Nadin-Davis SA, Muldoon FT, Wandeler AI. Diagnosis and analysis of a recent case of human rabies in Canada. Can J Infect Dis 2002 Mar;13(2):129-33.
- Nadin-Davis SA, Muldoon F, Wandeler AI. A molecular epidemiological analysis of the incursion of the raccoon strain of rabies virus into Canada. Epidemiol Infect 2006 Jun;134(3):534-47.
- Chang HG, Eidson M, Noonan-Toly C, Trimarchi CV, Rudd R, Wallace BJ, Smith PF, Morse DL. Public health impact of reemergence of rabies, New York. Emerg Infect Dis 2002 Sep;8(9):909-13.
- Finnegan CJ, Brookes SM, Johnson N, Smith J, Mansfield KL, Keene VL, McElhinney LM, Fooks AR. Rabies in North America and Europe. J R Soc Med 2002 Jan;95(1):9-13.
- Childs JE, Curns AT, Dey ME, Real LA, Feinstein L, Bjørnstad ON, Krebs JW. Predicting the local dynamics of epizootic rabies among raccoons in the United States. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2000 Dec 5;97(25):13666-71.
- Jackson AC, Phelan CC, Rossiter JP. Infection of Bergmann glia in the cerebellum of a skunk experimentally infected with street rabies virus. Can J Vet Res 2000 Oct;64(4):226-8.
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