Tourists to Bali warned of rabies
The Indonesian tourist island of Bali is in the grip of a serious outbreak of rabies.
The island which is home to three million inhabitants and an important tourist destination for world travellers is being plagued by a rabies epidemic which has caused nearly 80 deaths in the past two years.
Authorities in Bali have been running a dog eradication program, in which a third of the island’s canine population has already been exterminated.
Dogs are numerous in Bali, with many strays and wild dogs on the streets, left to roam amongst locals and tourists.
Now the island is struggling to cope with the disease which is believed to have been introduced from nearby islands in 2008.
There is a shortage of vaccines and hospitals have limited facilities even though the World Health Organisation has recommended a mass vaccination program.
It is believed many people who have been bitten go to the hospital and leave because there are no vaccines.
The disease usually proves fatal.
If action is taken immediately after the bite, which introduces infected saliva animal into the body, it is easy enough to cure the infection.
Once symptoms arise, treatment is often ineffective.
Early symptoms are like those accompanying flu: fever, headache and fatigue, leading to anxiety, difficulty breathing, paralysis, coma and death.
According to the WHO, worldwide rabies kills 55 thousand people per year, mostly children, with 60% of the victims in Asia.
Source: Europe News.Net
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