Rabies claims lives of 12 people in last six months

By Nimal Gunathilake

Twelve people had died from rabies during the last six months, the Health Ministry said yesterday.Director-Public Health Veterinary Service Dr. L.D. Kithsiri said, “95% of the infections happen due to dog bites. Puppies carry the highest risk of infection. In the last six months, we have vaccinated 500,000 dogs free of charge. We will also sterilise 30,000 street dogs to control their population,” he said.

There are between 20 and 30 million dogs in the country and only around 1.1 million dogs are vaccinated annually, he said.Dr. Kithsiri added that if they could vaccinate 70% of the canine population, the spread of rabies could be stopped.The Ministry recommends the annual rabies vaccination of all dogs above six weeks, Dr. Kithsiri said.He added that 20 to 30 deaths occurred annually due to rabies and mainly due to exposure to infected dogs.

“The main reasons for deaths in Sri Lanka are non-vaccination of dogs against rabies and not getting post-exposure treatments. If treated properly immediately after an infected animal bite, it is 100% preventable and post exposure vaccine and serum freely available at government hospitals,” he said.He added that Sri Lanka had adopted rabies control measures since 1975 and the number of human rabies deaths had declined from 377 in 1973 to 19 in 2014.

“Sri Lanka seeks to be rabies-free by the end of 2025. Towards the elimination of the disease, the country needs more effective, evidence-based strategies and efforts,” he said.Dr. Kithsiri added that there was a lack of awareness about the disease, especially among those who did not own pets.