Asunción, IP Agency.- This Saturday, on World Rabies Day, the Ministry of Health remembers that through the annual vaccination of pets protection against this serious disease is guaranteed. Paraguay has not registered cases of human rabies since 2004.
Every September 28, World Rabies Day is commemorated, to reinforce awareness about prevention. “Breaking barriers against the elimination of rabies” is the motto this year which invites us to work together and overcome limits in search of opportunities, and that participation will undoubtedly make a difference.
Rabies is one of the most lethal zoonoses known for more than 4000 years. It is a viral disease that affects the central nervous system of mammals: dogs, cats, bats, foxes, monkeys and among them humans.
The rabies virus is found mainly in the saliva and brain of those infected, so dogs and other animals can transmit it by bite. Bats represent an important reservoir of the virus in some regions.
This disease can be 100% prevented. Currently, we have the necessary tools to eliminate rabies transmitted by dogs, and that powerful tool is the vaccine.
“If the dogs are vaccinated, we are protecting our families from this terrible scourge, since these animals constitute the main reservoir that coexist with humans,” they point out from the National Zoonoses Program and National Anti-rabies Center (PNZ and CAN) of the Ministry of Health.
In recent years, the transmission of the disease has been reduced by 98% in the region of the Americas, a very important fact that represents the almost total elimination of human rabies.
Making history with the different slogans:
o – 2021: Anger: facts, not fear. It tries to raise awareness about the disease, vaccinate animals and educate people to prevent it.
o – 2022: One health, zero human deaths. Aimed at the importance of working together between the environment, people and animals.
o – 2023: One health for all. It implies that all sectors and disciplines must be together.
Rabies situation in Paraguay
Paraguay has not recorded cases of human rabies since 2004, thanks to the joint actions and efforts of all professions related to zoonoses, including education of the population.
The country presents the optimal conditions to achieve the qualification of “Country free of human rabies transmitted by dogs”. For this purpose, the “Strategic Plan for the Certification of Elimination of Human Rabies Transmitted by Dogs” was developed. This plan has ministerial approval according to SG Resolution No. 142/2023, dated April 17, 2023.
By Resolution SG No. 125/2024 of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Welfare, the fifth version of the National Guide to Standards and Procedures for the surveillance, prevention and control of rabies was approved.
The objective of this document is to provide clinical and epidemiological guidelines for human rabies surveillance, allowing health interventions.
At the moment:
There are rural areas where the circulation of the rabies virus is active, presenting sporadic cases of the disease in production animals. These cases maintain the rural cycle, involving hematophagous and/or wild carnivorous bats.
There are 33 positive cases of animal rabies reported by the National Animal Health and Quality Service (Senacsa) to the National Zoonoses Program, from week (SE) 1 to (SE) 37 of 2024.
Animal attacks on humans are a common query. It is important to go to health services, this allows professionals to provide the correct guidance. Until epidemiological week (EW) 37, 4,679 attacks by animals have been reported in the country.
The Rabies Diagnostic Laboratory of the National Zoonoses Control Program and National Anti-Rabies Center has a type IIA biological biosafety cabinet. The incorporation of the team contributes to strengthening the area of rabies diagnosis in dogs and cats, this represents a crucial step in the country’s commitment to strengthening rabies surveillance, as an integral part of its ambitious plan to eliminate human rabies. transmitted by dogs
In the National Zoonosis Program and National Anti-rabies Center, of the 179 samples received this year for diagnosis of animal rabies, 154 were dogs, 13 cats, 6 bats and 1 opossum.
Rabies vaccination is free
The National Zoonoses Control Program and National Anti-Rabies Center provides specialized advice to all patients attacked by potentially rabies animals.
In addition, it offers free rabies vaccination for dogs and cats, Monday to Friday, from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., and on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. The establishment is located on Mcal route. Estigarribeña, Km 10.5, on the university campus of the National University of Asunción (UNA), in the city of San Lorenzo, the health ministry reported.
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2024-09-30 18:46:25
