No one showed symptoms of rabies: Health Ministry

PUTRAJAYA: The Health Ministry today clarified that no person has shown symptoms of rabies so far.
Its minister, Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam, did however confirm that there were 12 cases of victims bitten by dogs with rabies but stressed that the victims did not have the virus.
“Reports that people are diagnosed with rabies are wrong, only dogs have been diagnosed with rabies so far,” he said.
"What we want to clarify is that there has not been any case of humans contracting rabies. We are monitoring these 12 people but no symptoms of the disease were found," Subramaniam added.
He said that those cases all hailed from the northern states with Perlis having nine, two from Penang and one from Kedah.
Subramaniam added that there is no way of confirming whether someone has the disease when he is alive.
“We can only confirm through the lab when they die by checking their brain tissue,” he said.
He said that, as of Sept 20, the number of dog bite cases (without rabies) in the northern states is 66 cases.
He added that for the time being, anyone who has been bitten by a dog, regardless if it has rabies or not, will be given vaccination following the protocol of the World Health Organisation (WHO).
He added that those with serious bites will be given Immunoglobulin, which neutralises pathogens such as virus and bacteria.
Some of the symptoms of rabies include fever, chills, fatigue, muscle ache, irritability and hydrophobia.
Subramaniam said there was only one confirmed case of rabies in the country which was in 1999.
He said those in close proximity to dogs should get regular check-ups whereas those who live in areas with stray dogs were advised to keep away and stay safe.