4 ms·

It's a three shot vaccine that only gives protection for two years. Considering how rare rabies infections are in humans, it seems like it makes more sense to t

It's a three shot vaccine that only gives protection for two years. Considering how rare rabies infections are in humans, it seems like it makes more sense to treat people after they are bitten and only vaccinate those who may come in contact with infected animals.

hammock 5y ago
Couldn't we all take the three shots every two years on a schedule?
- atrus 5y ago
  I mean, we can't get people to take two shots for something that's killing thousands, and you think you'd be able to get people to get three shots every two years for something that kills...basically no one?
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- mynegation 5y ago
  That would be a massive healthcare spending and logistical challenge with negligible reward. The system works pretty well given that state of Illinois had its first case in 67 years and even that was only because individual refused treatment.
  - deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]
- kybernetyk 5y ago
  We’re about to. Just not for rabies.
- Cerium 5y ago
  Besides, what's the point? If after a year you are exposed would you trust a year old vaccine or get a fresh round anyway? Universal rabies vaccination might not even change best practices.
- throwaway5752 5y ago
  Covid killed 600k+ in the US, has effective and low side effect vaccines, and vaccines are still controversial. Rabies vaccines have more injections than covid and a much higher frequency of side effects. Rabies is not contagious person to person. Regular scheduled rabies vaccination for the general public would be a bad use of scarce healthcare resources. The US already has pretty close the optimal rabies policy already, as evidenced by the case numbers. As others have noted, this person only had to take the shot. The bat tested positive for rabies and had bit him. It is inexplicable that the shot was declined - to the extent that they should have declared him incompetent and given them by force. Treating a dying rabies victim puts healthcare workers at risk (sharps/needles, etc). There isn't a healthcare policy solution that could have saved this person. Now, vaccinating host animal populations is another story: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prevalence_of_rabies#Canada https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prevalence_of_rabies#Canada
- bell-cot 5y ago
  I believe that is standard practice...for animal control officers, serius spelunkers, and such. For most folks, the risk/reward ratio just ain't there, to get regular rabies shots.
- coding123 5y ago
  Also, remember the title of this post "First Human Case of Rabies in Illinois Since 1954" and ask yourself if giving 1 billion shots in the United states every 2 years is worth it. Not to mention the cost for the full series for each person is north of $10K, we're talking about $10 Trillion dollars every 2 years. Of course the price would probably come down.
  - djrogers 5y ago
    You're confusing the cost of post-exposure treatment with the vaccine.
- s1artibartfast 5y ago
  Low occurrence side effects would negate the health benefit. 2-3 people die a year from rabies, and we would be looking at vaccinating 350 million/year.
jakeinspace 5y ago
If everybody were vaccinated for every disease that poses a risk greater than or equal to rabies, we'd spent half our lives waiting in line at vaccination centers.
monopoledance 5y ago
This is not true. After you get the first three doses you likely have life-long protection. In fact, when I got mine, I was informed they are not doing the follow-up anymore, because no case of rabies infections after the initial doses, ever. "Duration of immunity The relationship between the number of vaccine doses received for vaccination (PrEP or PEP) and the longevity of circulating VNA has been examined in several studies. In one study, 80% of vaccinees still had detect-able VNA titres 9 years after primary vaccination. No significant differences in VNA were observed in association with number of doses of vaccine received or the length of time after primary vaccination.16 Vaccine-induced memory B cells that appear to persist for life, and effective recall of the immune response to additional doses, such as for PEP, are documented for decades after priming." https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/272372/WER9316-201-219.pdf https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/272372/WER9...

hammock 5y ago

Couldn't we all take the three shots every two years on a schedule?

atrus 5y ago
I mean, we can't get people to take two shots for something that's killing thousands, and you think you'd be able to get people to get three shots every two years for something that kills...basically no one?
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
mynegation 5y ago
That would be a massive healthcare spending and logistical challenge with negligible reward. The system works pretty well given that state of Illinois had its first case in 67 years and even that was only because individual refused treatment.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
kybernetyk 5y ago
We’re about to. Just not for rabies.
Cerium 5y ago
Besides, what's the point? If after a year you are exposed would you trust a year old vaccine or get a fresh round anyway? Universal rabies vaccination might not even change best practices.
throwaway5752 5y ago
Covid killed 600k+ in the US, has effective and low side effect vaccines, and vaccines are still controversial. Rabies vaccines have more injections than covid and a much higher frequency of side effects. Rabies is not contagious person to person. Regular scheduled rabies vaccination for the general public would be a bad use of scarce healthcare resources. The US already has pretty close the optimal rabies policy already, as evidenced by the case numbers. As others have noted, this person only had to take the shot. The bat tested positive for rabies and had bit him. It is inexplicable that the shot was declined - to the extent that they should have declared him incompetent and given them by force. Treating a dying rabies victim puts healthcare workers at risk (sharps/needles, etc). There isn't a healthcare policy solution that could have saved this person. Now, vaccinating host animal populations is another story: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prevalence_of_rabies#Canada https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prevalence_of_rabies#Canada
bell-cot 5y ago
I believe that is standard practice...for animal control officers, serius spelunkers, and such. For most folks, the risk/reward ratio just ain't there, to get regular rabies shots.
coding123 5y ago
Also, remember the title of this post "First Human Case of Rabies in Illinois Since 1954" and ask yourself if giving 1 billion shots in the United states every 2 years is worth it. Not to mention the cost for the full series for each person is north of $10K, we're talking about $10 Trillion dollars every 2 years. Of course the price would probably come down.
- djrogers 5y ago
  You're confusing the cost of post-exposure treatment with the vaccine.
s1artibartfast 5y ago
Low occurrence side effects would negate the health benefit. 2-3 people die a year from rabies, and we would be looking at vaccinating 350 million/year.

jakeinspace 5y ago

If everybody were vaccinated for every disease that poses a risk greater than or equal to rabies, we'd spent half our lives waiting in line at vaccination centers.

monopoledance 5y ago

This is not true. After you get the first three doses you likely have life-long protection. In fact, when I got mine, I was informed they are not doing the follow-up anymore, because no case of rabies infections after the initial doses, ever. "Duration of immunity The relationship between the number of vaccine doses received for vaccination (PrEP or PEP) and the longevity of circulating VNA has been examined in several studies. In one study, 80% of vaccinees still had detect-able VNA titres 9 years after primary vaccination. No significant differences in VNA were observed in association with number of doses of vaccine received or the length of time after primary vaccination.16 Vaccine-induced memory B cells that appear to persist for life, and effective recall of the immune response to additional doses, such as for PEP, are documented for decades after priming." https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/272372/WER9316-201-219.pdf https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/272372/WER9...