Rabies has a fatality rate of nearly 100% and no specific cure. Once the rabies virus reaches the brain, infected individuals develop symptoms such as fear of wind, water, and light, along with excessive salivation, ultimately leading to death. Rabies vaccination is the only method of prevention.

Vietnam currently uses two types of new-generation rabies vaccines from France and India. These vaccines do not contain neural cells, thus posing no risk to health or memory. Individuals bitten by dogs or cats are typically prescribed 5 intramuscular doses or 8 intradermal doses within one month. For large wounds or those near the central nervous system, such as on the head, face, neck, extremities, or genitals, doctors will also prescribe antirabies serum.

Rabies vaccines must be administered early and according to the full schedule and intervals prescribed by a doctor. Receiving only one vaccine dose or an incomplete course will not enable the body to develop immunity against the rabies virus. Exposed individuals still face the risk of developing the disease. A recent case highlights this: a 55-year-old man in My An commune, Tay Ninh, contracted rabies nearly one year after being bitten on two fingers by a dog, having received only one dose of the rabies vaccine.

Children and parents receive pre-exposure rabies vaccine at VNVC Phan Thiet (Lam Dong) amidst local dog deaths suspected of rabies. Photo: Thu Ngan

Given that your child was bitten on the hand, a location close to the central nervous system, you should thoroughly clean the wound with soap under running water for 15 minutes and disinfect it with 45-70 degree alcohol or iodine alcohol to minimize the amount of rabies virus at the bite site. Afterward, take your child to a medical facility for a doctor to examine the wound, prescribe vaccine doses, and potentially administer antirabies serum if necessary. Your child must receive the number of vaccine doses prescribed by the doctor, and the dog should be monitored. If the dog remains healthy after 10 days, your child may stop subsequent doses.

If your child completes the full rabies vaccination course this time, for any subsequent bites, scratches, or licks, only two vaccine doses will be required, as recommended by the Ministry of Health. You should avoid applying leaves, traditional herbal remedies, or seeking treatment from folk healers, as these can lead to infection and facilitate easier entry of the rabies virus into the child's body.

The rabies-causing virus is abundant in the saliva of warm-blooded mammals such as dogs, cats, monkeys, and rats, transmitting to humans through bites, scratches, or licks. Hot weather conditions, like those currently experienced, are conducive to rabies outbreaks. Therefore, pet owners should ensure their animals are fully vaccinated and muzzled when taken outdoors. Everyone should get vaccinated for rabies immediately after being bitten, scratched, or licked.

In addition to post-exposure vaccination, pre-exposure rabies vaccination is also available, involving a schedule of three doses. If one has completed both pre- and post-exposure vaccination courses, subsequent bites, scratches, or licks from animals will only require two vaccine doses on day 0 and 3, without the need for antirabies serum. Even if bitten by a vaccinated dog or cat, the Ministry of Health guidelines still recommend vaccination; complacency should be avoided.

Doctor Mai Ha Thanh

(Head Doctor, VNVC Dien Bien Phu Center)

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