Rabies reported in Missouri, 1948-1968
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"Rabies is a zoonotic disease that affects man, dogs, cats, cattle, horses, pigs, skunks, foxes and other mammals. It has received continued public interest because of its long history and the prolonged, frenzied death of persons contracting the disease. Celsus in 1 B.C. described rabies as "a most wretched disease, in which the sick person is tormented at the same time with thirst and the fear of water and in which there is but little hope" (Smithcors, 1958a). The same description accurately depicts the clinical manifestation of rabies today. Continued public concern has resulted in increased interest in surveillance of the disease. Domestic animals, particularly dogs and cats were for many years considered the principal sources of the disease in humans. Epidemiological investigations over the last few decades incriminated many wild animals as frequent hosts and reservoirs of infection. Skunks, foxes, opossums, bats and coyotes are among the most common wild animals affected. Rabies has been evident in the United States since pre-Revolutionary times (Smithcors, 1958a). As interest in public health developed, so did interest in rabies, a potential danger to the health of the public. The United States Department of Agriculture started compiling information on cases of rabies in the United States in 1938. A more intensive rabies surveillance program was established by the United States Public Health Service in 1951 (Scholtens and Tierkel, 1963). Data from this intensified program supplied epidemiologists with more complete and comprehensive information on cases of rabies in the United States. The surveillance records revealed a definite decline in the total number of cases of rabies in the United States in the last two decades. The decline was most dramatic in domestic animals, especially dogs (Scholtens and Tierkel, 1963). This probably can be credited to public education, vaccination of dogs, dog control laws and efforts by public health and other officials to accomplish these tasks. While efforts were being made to control rabies in the dog population in the United States, wild animals be come more important in the transmission cycle of the disease. Skunks and foxes showed the greatest increases in the wild animal species affected (Buff, 1964). The purpose of this study was to analyze the data available on rabies in animals and man in the state of Missouri between 1948 and 1968. There has been a marked decrease in the annual number of cases of rabies in Missouri during recent years. As in other areas of the United States, there has not been a proportionate decrease in all species. Cases in domestic animals have decreased while wild animal cases have increased. This study examines the questions of where and why these changes took place. The data used in this study were compiled from the records of the Missouri Division of Health. Information was available on cases of rabies confirmed in state laboratories using various diagnostic methods."--Introduction.
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