Durban — The National Institute For Communicable Diseases’ December report reveals that 11 cases of human rabies have been confirmed in South Africa for the year 2023 to date.
According to the NICD, these cases were reported from KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape where there were five cases in each province, the one other case was recorded in Limpopo.
Of the five in the Eastern Cape, two cases were reported in Qonce; this was while in KZN eThekwini had two cases (April and August) and King Cetshwayo in Umlamlazi (February), Zululand (August), and Ugu each had one case.
The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development head of Vet Services Dr Temba Sikhakhane said rabies was an old, long-standing problem and it is seen in all districts, particularly, along the coast in the KZN province.
“The main vectors in KZN are canines (dogs) and therefore we see much more human rabies because of close contact with the vector. The main target for rabies eradication lies with the eradication of rabies in the canine population.”
Rabies is a viral infection of the nervous system it is reported in different wild and domestic animal species, but most cases of rabies in the country involve domestic dogs.
Human rabies cases are rare in South Africa but cases are still confirmed annually.
The virus is contained in the saliva of a rabid animal with most human rabies cases in South Africa associated with domestic dog exposures.
Sikhakhane said Dard has ongoing public awareness campaigns throughout the province to promote understanding of the disease and the importance of treatment for bite victims and vaccination of dogs as a primary control measure.
On December 5, a 14-year-old male from Qonce, Eastern Cape Province, became the 11th confirmed human rabies case in the country this year.
The NICD said that in early October, the adolescent sustained several bites to the head and face from a dog in the neighbourhood.
“The dog could not be traced afterwards. Medical attention was sought, but the patient did not receive rabies post-exposure prophylaxis. Two months after the incident, the patient developed fever, malaise, headache, nausea, vomiting, pain, and paraesthesia at the sites of the wounds, muscle spasms, dysphagia, ataxia, aerophobia, confusion, anxiety, aggression, agitation, hyperactivity, and hypersalivation. The patient died during the second week of December.”
Spokesperson for the Eastern MEC for Rural Development and Agrarian Reform, Nonkqubela Pieters said in communities where rabies have been identified, all pets and large animals are revaccinated if they were involved in the outbreaks.
“Rabies Vaccination is for free and the Province partners with the Department of Health, private veterinarians, and municipalities on animal welfare and rabies control. The department always dedicates a period from the month of July to the end of September when veterinary officials in every municipality visit communities for vaccination of pets. It is commonly known as the Annual Rabies Campaign. These vaccination campaigns are accompanied by rabies information days and World Rabies Day held on 28 September each year,” she said.
In 2021 the NICD reported that there were 19 human rabies cases reported in the country.
In 2022 the NICD reported that as of December 13, 2022, a total of 13 laboratory-confirmed human rabies cases were reported from South Africa.
“We can only comment on positive animal rabies and indicate that we are pleased with the decline in numbers of positive rabies animals. We further applaud Eastern Cape pet owners for their active participation in the vaccination efforts and for advising us on neighbours who are not able to bring their animals to the vaccination station on the day,” said Pieters.
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