- cross-posted to:
- news@lemmy.world
- cross-posted to:
- news@lemmy.world
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Horrible. Understandable that a parent may not know the risk involved.
Only reason I know was when I worked at a summer camp they hammered into us that if a bat was found in a cabin we had to catch it for testing, or else everyone staying in that cabin would get rabies shots.
I assume we would be ok if it didn’t bite us?
Edit: no get tested. Apparently they attack when humans are sleeping and can leave no trace.
Little known fact groundhogs are also rabies vectors
He just popped out, saw his shadow, pulled out a switchblade, and then started running straight towards us
I can blame the parent for bad parenting and call myself informed and everyone else should be … because I know about bats carrying rabies
But I also know that most people have no clue that any of this can happen … it’s the first case of someone dying from rabies in Ontario from an infection that originated in Ontario since 1967 … people have no clue that this is even possible in this day in age
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/rabies-death-1.7341335
About eight or ten years ago I woke up one night in my cottage to a bat flying around my place. It was dark inside and I saw this thing fluttering around in my room. I opened a window and let it out and never thought anything of it. About a year later, I happened to be reading some stuff about rabies … the hair in the back of my neck went up and it’s freaked me out since.
After that bat in my room, I never went for treatment, I never got checked out and I never thought anything of it. It’s been about ten years and I keep worrying that some day I’ll start feeling the effects of it. I think most people in Ontario would do the same because everyone thinks we got rid of rabies decades ago or that it is a third world disease that isn’t possible here.
I feel terrible for that parent … death from rabies is a horrible way to die and it happened to this child with their parents watching it all happen.
I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy … let alone someone I would accuse of bad parenting.
Quick heads up that we do have effective treatments UNTIL you start exhibiting symptoms, after that you can’t really be cured anymore and would just have to live with it (and manage the symptoms until it kills you shortly after)
I can blame the parent for bad parenting and call myself informed and everyone else should be … because I know about bats carrying rabies
Most provinces and the federal’s health protocols no longer recommend automatic treatment for “bat in room” situations. Only if there’s reasonable doubt of having been bitten. I’ve been there and I really had to advocate to the ER doctor that there was no way for me to know.
The CDC guidelines are a bit confusing too, like is just being in a house common behavior, as in the part about keeping bats out, or a sign of rabies as in an earlier part? Should you check for physical contact or just go get tested? (And in the US, will your insurance cover the test without symptoms showing?) Should you get the fucking plague beast out of your house while avoiding contact, or try to catch it for testing?
I thought by the time it is detectable in tests on a person, that person is already terminal. My understanding is if you have any chance of exposure from an animal you skip the tests and go get the shots. IDK about insurance.
Get shots, pay health insurance. Dont get shots, life insurance pays your loved ones.
Macabre and sadly true.
I try not to judge, but I’m also utterly confused as to why the parents wouldn’t immediately have brought the child in for the shot after finding the bat, visible bite or not…
To tell the truth I wouldn’t have thought about it. A stray deranged dog or racoon would raise alarm bells, but we set bats here at night always, and didn’t consider the risk. Oops
No scratches, no bite. Why would they?
Bats have tiny teeth and it’s possible to be bitten without there being any visible mark. You should always go for treatment if you have had an interaction with a bat. Better safe than dying one of the worst ways possible.
Most commonly they bite you while you’re sleeping, so you don’t know
My thinking would be why risk not getting checked out? Unfortunately worst case scenario happened this time :(
The indication for testing according the CDC is a bite.
The rabies test is cheap. Could have tested the kid or the bat, but again why would they do it if there’s no indication for exposure. This was the first case in the province of someone being infected with rabies inside their own home since 1967.
When you hear hoofbeats you don’t think it’s zebras.
As soon as a rabies test comes back positive, you have a death sentence.
You can’t test the kid, only the bat. So if they didn’t catch it testing is a no go.
There’s like eleven kinds of blood tests for rabies. None of them work on people, or is it by the time they work it’s too late?
By the time it’s detectable it’s too late.
How do you think the child got rabies in this situation?
Obviously they overlooked a scratch or a bite. Rabies isn’t airborne.
This you?
No scratches, no bite. Why would they?
Maybe it drooled into their open mouth or something. Or onto their hand and later they picked their nose.
Sounds possible. Bats are mammals, maybe it sneezed, covered, but didn’t wash it’s hands, gave the kid a high five, and then the kid wiped a booger out of his eye with it.
Poor kid, never had a chance.
Heartbreaking
That’s literally the health institutions protocol now a days. Though for kids it depends how credible the kid is about not being exposed.
I looked at the CDC website before posting Aunt. It says the only indication for treatment is a bite or a scratch from species known to carry rabies. It doesn’t say anything about testing for mere exposure.
I guess I see the counterpoints.
It’s a kid. The duration of the exposure is unknown. Whether there was any contact is unknown. Bat. Bites or scratches can be invisible. Bires or scratches could be mistaken.
What’s the scuttlebutt here, your saying in this situation to test the kid or administer a vaccine?
I’m certain the medical staff 's determination of The credibility of a fact attested to by a child is not a factor.
We’re also assuming this kid isn’t a straight up victim of healthcare inequality. The article is light on details. Perhaps the parents considered this, searched the web, searched for bites or scratches, and the cost of seeking care felt too great for this family? I didn’t catch if this happened in a civilized nation with universal health.
Fuck, this story is terrifying. Reminds me in some ways of when a kid dies in a hot car.
You can’t test the kid. What I’m saying is a lot of people in here are quick to judge the parents, but clearly even to medical professionals the situation is not cut and dry.
As I mentioned in another comment, I’ve been there. I have been through PPE, and I had to seriously advocate for myself to the ER doctor for him to go consult an infectious disease specialist before they agreed.
I try not to judge, but I am going to make an exception in this case.
Bad parents plain and simple. That child deserved better.
Some people aren’t educated in these things.
Some people aren’t educated in these things.
Tell that to the dead child who deserved better than ignorant parents that didn’t even care enough to do a Google search.
Ignorance is not an excuse.
It isn’t protocol for the hospitals to give the shot for a bat in the room. Probably would have gone to the hospital and been turned away.
And it’s easy after the fact to say oh should have done this. As they say hindsight is 20/20.
A lot of people have a lot of strong opinions around here so, as someone who’s been in a bat in room situation with ambiguous contact potential let me point you to Quebec’s Health Ministry’s Post Exposition Prophylaxis guidelines:
Vacciner les personnes ayant eu une exposition significative à une source potentiellement rabique.
Une exposition significative est une morsure, une griffure ou un contact de la salive ou du LCR d’un mammifère potentiellement rabique avec une plaie fraîche (ayant saigné ou suinté depuis moins de 24 heures) ou avec une muqueuse.
L’exposition significative se définit comme suit :
Chauve‑souris : présence des 2 conditions suivantes :
Contact physique reconnu avec la chauve‑souris; Morsure, griffure ou contact de la salive de la chauve‑souris avec une plaie fraîche (ayant saigné ou suinté depuis moins de 24 heures) ou avec une muqueuse non exclu. La PPE n’est pas indiquée en l’absence de contact physique reconnu (ex. : chauve‑souris trouvée dans la maison sans qu’on ait eu connaissance d’un contact physique avec l’animal). Si la description des faits ne peut être obtenue auprès d’une personne fiable (ex. : jeune enfant ou personne intoxiquée), il faut chercher à savoir si des éléments de l’histoire laissent croire à un tel contact, comme des cris ou des pleurs soudains ou inhabituels ou bien une lésion cutanée compatible avec une morsure de chauve‑souris (plaie punctiforme comparable à la piqûre d’une aiguille hypodermique, d’un diamètre inférieur ou égal à 1 mm, peu ou pas douloureuse).
https://www.msss.gouv.qc.ca/professionnels/vaccination/piq-vaccins/rage-vaccin-contre-la-rage/
Translation of the bold section: PPE is not indicated in the absence of known physical contact (ex: a bat found in the house without knowledge of physical contact).
See also this triage chart:
https://www.msss.gouv.qc.ca/aide-decision-app/accueil.php?situation=Rage
