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Outbreaks of Attacks by Hematophagous Bats in Isolated Riverine Communities in the Brazilian Amazon: A Challenge to Rabies Control
Author(s) -
CarvalhoCosta F. A.,
Tedesqui V. L.,
de Jesus Nascimento Monteiro M.,
Bóia M. N.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
zoonoses and public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.87
H-Index - 65
eISSN - 1863-2378
pISSN - 1863-1959
DOI - 10.1111/j.1863-2378.2011.01444.x
Subject(s) - rabies , amazon rainforest , geography , outbreak , veterinary medicine , epidemiology , socioeconomics , environmental health , biology , ecology , medicine , virology , sociology
Summary Human rabies has re‐emerged in Latin America due to bat associated transmission. We present data related to attacks by hematophagous bats in three riverine communities in the Rio Negro basin, Brazilian Amazon. A cross‐sectional survey was carried out to obtain demographic and epidemiological data through interviews with 201 inhabitants. A total of 721 bat attacks with bites took place from 2004 to 2006, 238 (33%) reported by residents in Campinas do Rio Preto, 329 (46%) in Águas Vivas and 154 (21%) in the community of Malalahá. Incidence density among surveyed inhabitants was 84 attacks/100 persons‐years in Campinas do Rio Preto, 249 attacks/100 persons‐years in Águas Vivas and 81 attacks/100 persons‐years in Malalahá. The proportion of surveyed inhabitants bled by bats at least once was 67% (63/94) in Campinas do Rio Preto, 96% (42/44) in Águas Vivas and 62% (39/63) in Malalahá. Among subjects bled by bats, the average number of bites was 4.6 ± 4.2 standard deviations (SD) in Campinas do Rio Preto, 8 ± 6 SD in Águas Vivas and 4.1 ± 3.9 SD in Malalahá. Regarding houses, 67% (26/39) had animals in the peridomestic environment (chickens and/or dogs) and all were vulnerable to bats due to gaps in the walls and/or in the windows and doors. In 13 dwellings, rudimentary protection against bats through the fixation of fishing nets and/or straw nets to the windows and other openings was observed. Among dwellers reporting attacks, 48% (68/144) received the full post‐exposure anti‐rabies vaccination protocol with five doses of diploid human cell vaccine, 28% (39/144) received an incomplete schedule (1–4 doses), and 26% (37/144) did not receive any dose. No cases of rabies were reported during the study; however, regular pre‐exposure vaccination in the studied populations must be considered.