Rabies still represents an important public health problem in Asia. 56% of reported human rabies deaths occur in Asia, and India alone accounts for 65% of those. Nevertheless, in the field of communicable diseases, rabies ranks far behind the current and future top priorities of organizations such as World Health Organisation when considering their public health impact.
There is no mandated reporting for rabies cases of human or animal rabies in India, and laboratory diagnosis is very rarely made in both humans and animals; therefore, accurate mortality data are unknown. As a result, rabies is ranked low on the priority list for disease control programs [when considering their public health impact expressed in terms of mortality, morbidity and disability adjusted life years (DALYS)].
Underestimating the health implications of rabies leads many high-ranking decision makers in public health and animal health to perceive rabies as a rare disease of humans resulting from the bite of an economically unimportant animal (the dog). Therefore, rabies usually falls between two stools, and is not dealt with appropriately either by the Ministry of Health or the Ministry of Agriculture.
For all of these reasons, rabies is a neglected disease, yet has many of the characteristics of a disease on which one could have a significant and rapid impact. Rabies is an entirely preventable disease. It is a vaccine-preventable disease (in humans and animals), and the expertise to formulate strategies to successfully eliminate rabies is available.
Nevertheless pre-exposure anti-rabies vaccine has been available for high-risk groups, including children and pet owners, since 1967 and yet globally, only 1.5 million people have been immunized. Many of the countries particularly affected by rabies can afford only the less effective and relatively dangerous nerve tissue vaccines.
Among human infections, rabies is the tenth leading cause of death and today more people die from rabies than from yellow fever, dengue and Japanese encephalitis combined.
Further information:
WHO's Department of Communicable Disease Surveillance and Response (CSR):
