Travelers may have misconceptions about rabies and may underestimate their risks for exposure1,2

 

Geographic Distribution

  • Rabies is known to exist on every continent except Antarctica3
  • Africa and Asia have the highest human rabies burden, accounting for 95% of rabies deaths, worldwide3

Rabies in the US

  • Rabies is present in 49 of the the 50 US states5,6

             - Hawaii is free of rabies6

  • In 2018, 55,000 persons in the US sought post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) treatment after contact with a potentially rabid animal.7
  • Every year 30,000 to 60,000 people come into contact with potentially rabid animals in the US.8
  • Over 70% of reported US cases of human rabies between 1960-2018 were US-acquired.7
  • Due to successful post-exposure treatment programs in the US, deaths each year associated with rabies are rare (averaging 1-2 per year in the US) but can still occur in people who fail to seek timely post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) usually because they are unaware of their exposure.8,9

 

Rabies: 99% Fatal, 100% Preventable10,11
Learn more about Vaccination

  1. McIntosh I. Pre-Travel Health Consultation. Journal of Travel Medicine. 2015;22.3:143-144. Accessed March, 2024. https://academic.oup.com/jtm/article/22/3/143/2563172

  2. International Assistance for Medical Assistance to Travellers. Accessed March, 2024. https://www.iamat.org/blog/5-misconceptions-about-rabies/.

  3. World Health Organization (WHO). Rabies fact sheet. 27 September 2019. Accessed March, 2024. https://www.who.int/en/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/rabies.

  4. Based on World Health Organization (WHO). Distribution of risk levels for humans contacting rabies, 2018. Accessed March, 2024. https://www.who.int/ith/rabies2018.png?ua=1.

  5. Ma X, et al. Rabies surveillance in the US during 2018. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2020;256:195–208. Accessed March, 2024. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31910075/.

  6. State of Hawaii. Dept of Health. Rabies. Accessed March, 2024. https://health.hawaii.gov/docd/disease_listing/rabies/.

  7. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Vital Signs: Trends in Human Rabies Deaths and Exposures—United States 1938-2018. MMWR. 2019;68:524-528. Accessed March, 2024.https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/68/wr/mm6823e1.htm.

  8. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Rabies in the US. Accessed March, 2024.https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/location/usa/surveillance/human_rabies.html.

  9. North American Rabies Management Plan: A Partnership for Effective Management, 2008. US National Overview. Accessed March, 2024. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/wildlife_damage/oral_rabies/downloads/Final%20NARMP%209-30-2008%20(ENGLISH).pdf.

  10. World Health Organization (WHO). Vaccinating against rabies to save lives. Accessed March, 2024. https://www.who.int/activities/vaccinating-against-rabies-to-save-lives.

  11. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Rabies prevention. Accessed March, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/prevention/people.html.