Current:Home > InvestMinnesota reports rare human death from rabies -FundPrime
Minnesota reports rare human death from rabies
View
Date:2025-04-15 05:11:28
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Minnesota resident who came into contact with a bat in July died of rabies, the state’s department of health announced Friday.
The person’s death marks a rare occurrence, as fewer than 10 people in the the U.S. die from rabies each year, according to the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. The person is over the age of 65 and was exposed to a bat in western Minnesota in July, the Minnesota Department of Health said.
CDC officials confirmed the rabies diagnosis at its lab in Atlanta on Sept. 20. In a news release, the state health department said it was working to evaluate whether more people were exposed to the disease, but said there was no ongoing risk to the public
Officials said the fatal case advised the public to avoid contact with bats, whose teeth are so tiny that a bite may not be felt or even leave a noticeable mark.
Rabies is caused by a virus that invades the central nervous system and is usually fatal in animals and humans. If left untreated, rabies is almost always fatal. But rabies treatment has proven to be nearly highly effective at preventing the disease after an exposure, state health officials said. Treatment must be started before symptoms of rabies appear, they added.
Dr. Stacy Holzbauer, the state public health veterinarian, also advised people to get their household pets and livestock immunized against rabies.
The number of rabies-related human deaths in the U.S. has declined from more than 100 annually in the early 1900s to less than five cases annually in recent years, the health department. About 70% of infections acquired in the country are attributed to bat exposures.
veryGood! (11759)
Related
- Questlove charts 50 years of SNL musical hits (and misses)
- 'Alien: Romulus' cast faces freaky Facehuggers at Comic-Con: 'Just run'
- 'Avengers' star Robert Downey Jr. returns to Marvel – but as Doctor Doom
- What's it like to play Olympic beach volleyball under Eiffel Tower? 'Something great'
- Selena Gomez engaged to Benny Blanco after 1 year together: 'Forever begins now'
- In first Olympics since Russian imprisonment, Brittney Griner more grateful than ever
- 3 men sentenced for racist conspiracy plot to destroy Northwest power grid
- NYC mayor issues emergency order suspending parts of new solitary confinement law
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- Watch this driver uncover the source of a mysterious noise under her car hood
Ranking
- Macy's says employee who allegedly hid $150 million in expenses had no major 'impact'
- After years of fighting Iowa’s strict abortion law, clinics also prepared to follow it
- Technology’s grip on modern life is pushing us down a dimly lit path of digital land mines
- 'Ghosts' Season 4 will bring new characters, holiday specials and big changes
- See you latte: Starbucks plans to cut 30% of its menu
- Victor Wembanyama leads France over Brazil in 2024 Paris Olympics opener
- Judge sends Milwaukee man to prison for life in 2023 beating death of 5-year-old boy
- Photos and videos capture intense flames, damage from Park Fire in California
Recommendation
2025 'Doomsday Clock': This is how close we are to self
3 dead, 2 critically injured after 25-foot pontoon boat capsizes on Lake Powell in northern Arizona
Boar's Head issues recall for more than 200,000 pounds of liverwurst, other sliced meats
Fostering a kitten? A Californian university wants to hear from you
Louvre will undergo expansion and restoration project, Macron says
A Vermont man is charged with aggravated murder in an 82-year-old neighbor’s death
Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Mixtapes
Attorney for cartel leader ‘El Mayo’ Zambada says his client was kidnapped and brought to the US