3 ms·

> If you are bitten by a raccoon, you can’t really decide not to get the rabies vaccine. It’s literally a life-or-death situation. But the price is incredibly h

by jolmg 8y ago

> If you are bitten by a raccoon, you can’t really decide not to get the rabies vaccine. It’s literally a life-or-death situation. But the price is incredibly high. We had a bill from someone who had gotten a rabies vaccine at an emergency room What the... I'm pretty sure vaccines only work to prevent illnesses and are very much useless to treat them. I mean they're supposed to be small quantities of the virus or bacteria that causes a given illness to train the immune system to defend itself. Why would you add more of the rabies virus when you might potentially already have more than you can handle after being bitten? I thought she was just giving a bad imaginary example, but she says she "had a bill from someone who had gotten a rabies vaccine at an emergency room". Could she have misinterpreted why the vaccine was administered? but why would anyone need a vaccine in an emergency?

nsillik 8y ago
The rabies vaccine is usually only given post-bite, unless you’re unusually likely to be bitten (e.g. veterinarian). If you don’t get the rabies vaccine shortly after being infected, you will almost certainly die.
Sniffnoy 8y ago
No, that's how rabies vaccines are typically used. You get them after (potential) exposure but before the disease kicks in. You can also get it in advance -- they last about 10 years -- but this isn't typically done, presumably because most people don't expect to get bitten by wild animals very often.
mintplant 8y ago
This is referring to postexposure rabies prophylaxis (PRP); see https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/medical_care/ https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/medical_care/ under "Postexposure Vaccinations": > Rabies postexposure prophylaxis consists of a dose of human rabies immune globulin and rabies vaccine given on the day of the exposure, and then a dose of vaccine given again on days 3, 7, and 14.
maxerickson 8y ago
Rabies is a slow moving infection that hides from the immune system and usually doesn't become lethal until it hits the central nervous system. The vaccine stimulates immunity before the infection becomes serious. Modern treatment also includes antibodies that will immediately work against the virus.

by jolmg 8y ago

nsillik 8y ago

The rabies vaccine is usually only given post-bite, unless you’re unusually likely to be bitten (e.g. veterinarian). If you don’t get the rabies vaccine shortly after being infected, you will almost certainly die.

Sniffnoy 8y ago

No, that's how rabies vaccines are typically used. You get them after (potential) exposure but before the disease kicks in. You can also get it in advance -- they last about 10 years -- but this isn't typically done, presumably because most people don't expect to get bitten by wild animals very often.

mintplant 8y ago

This is referring to postexposure rabies prophylaxis (PRP); see https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/medical_care/ https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/medical_care/ under "Postexposure Vaccinations": > Rabies postexposure prophylaxis consists of a dose of human rabies immune globulin and rabies vaccine given on the day of the exposure, and then a dose of vaccine given again on days 3, 7, and 14.

maxerickson 8y ago

Rabies is a slow moving infection that hides from the immune system and usually doesn't become lethal until it hits the central nervous system. The vaccine stimulates immunity before the infection becomes serious. Modern treatment also includes antibodies that will immediately work against the virus.