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Despite Injections, Vaccine and Serum, Five-Year-Old Girl Dies of Rabies in Chandigarh

by Julia Samuel on Apr 16 2015 7:00 PM

Despite Injections, Vaccine and Serum, Five-Year-Old Girl Dies of Rabies in Chandigarh
Five-year-old Sadiya, died of rabies in Manimajra, Chandigarh, India, though she was treated for rabies.
Her organs started failing, she had breathing difficulties and was writhing in pain in the paediatric emergency of the PGI. One of the doctors treating her said, “The child has rabies and her condition is very critical. There is nothing much we can do.”

The dog had torn Sadiya’s face and lips and she was rushed to the PGI on March 25, 2015. She was given the anti-rabies treatment and discharged from the hospital after about a week. Her condition deteriorated and she was admitted again for treatment.

Sadiya’s mother, Imrana said, “There was improvement in Sadiya’s health after she was discharged from the hospital. She used to play, watch television and eat food on her own, although she complained of weakness. Two days back, she developed fever and I took her to the local civil dispensary. Her condition deteriorated and she started frothing at the mouth and nose."

Sadiya had been given tetanus injection, immunoglobulin serum, and the anti-rabies vaccine as part of her anti-rabies treatment. An expert explained to the query of why the little girl was a prey in spite of the treatment.

He said, “Dog-bite injuries on the hand and the face can be deadly. In these, the rabies virus travels through nerves to the brain very quickly. Anti-rabies treatment should be given immediately in such cases. The correct dose and the quality of serum also matter. Was the girl given the correct dose? Twenty units of the human serum, or 40 units of the equine serum, per kilogram of the body weight is the right dose,” he added.

Source-Medindia


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