Should I be worried about rabies on holiday and where is it a risk?
Following the death of a British grandmother from rabies, tourists headed on their summer holidays may have heightened concerns about the safety of their travel plans.
Yvonne Ford, 59, died in Sheffield last Wednesday (11 June), four months after being scratched by a puppy in Morocco.
Rabies, a rare but deadly infection, is usually transmitted to humans through a bite or scratch from an infected animal.
Once symptoms appear, the viral disease is almost always fatal.
Common symptoms of rabies include numbness, hallucinations and difficulty swallowing.
Here's everything holidaymakers need to know to stay safe from rabies while travelling.
What is rabies?
Rabies is a usually fatal infection of the brain and nerves that can be caught if a person is bitten, scratched or licked by an infected animal.
The viral disease is spread by contact with saliva from mammals, such as dogs, bats, raccoons and foxes.
What are the symptoms of rabies?
According to the NHS, symptoms of rabies can take days, weeks or even several months to appear.
These include:
Numbness or tingling where you were bitten or scratched
Hallucinations
Feeling very anxious or energetic
Difficulty swallowing or breathing
Paralysis
'Once symptoms appear, rabies is almost always fatal,' says NHS guidance.
Where is rabies most common?
Rabies is rare in the UK, but it is found in some UK bat species.
It is more common in parts of:
Asia
Africa
Central and South America
Can I get a rabies vaccine?
There is a pre-exposure rabies vaccine that is recommended to travellers visiting regions where the viral disease is more common.
Travellers headed to remote areas for more than a month with a likelihood of encountering infected animals are encouraged by the NHS to have the vaccine.
In most cases, you have to pay for the rabies vaccine.
Is there a treatment for rabies?
Yes, if administered before symptoms appear, travellers can be treated to prevent rabies post-exposure.
This usually involves two or more doses of the rabies vaccine.
According to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA): 'A full course of pre-exposure rabies vaccines will provide good protection from rabies for most people.'
If a traveller has completed a full course of the pre-exposure rabies vaccine within the last year, they may receive a single booster dose.
The NHS say that those who have not had the rabies vaccine before or are immunocompromised may also have their wound treated with a medicine called rabies immunoglobulin.
However, once symptoms develop, there is no effective treatment.
What is the UK government's advice for travellers?
To reduce the risk of getting rabies while travelling abroad, the UKHSA tells tourists to avoid contact with any wild animals, including touching or feeding them.
It also warns: 'Rabid animals may behave strangely or seem unusually tame, but some may not have any signs that they are infected.'
If bitten, scratched or licked by an animal on broken skin, UKHSA recommends travellers take these steps:
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South Wales Argus
20 minutes ago
- South Wales Argus
£120m to reduce NHS waiting times in Wales announced
This comes as the latest NHS Wales performance data for April and May 2025 reveal the scale of the challenge ahead. The data show a slight increase in the number of people waiting more than two years for treatment compared to March. However, this figure is 86 per cent lower than its peak. Swansea Bay and Powys health boards have no pathways waiting longer than two years and no one-year waits for a first outpatient appointment. Hywel Dda and Aneurin Bevan university health boards each have fewer than 300 patient pathways waiting more than two years for treatment. Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, however, has the most pathways waiting more than two years for treatment in Wales. Mr Miles said: "It is disappointing to see the increase in long waits in April after all the progress health boards have made over the last few months. "However, this is an annual trend seen in April in Wales and also the other UK nations. "This is why we are making changes to how the NHS provides planned care and are investing £120m to bring down waiting times this year. "This new funding will mean more and faster appointments, tests and treatments over the next 12 months." Nearly 2,000 people started their cancer treatment in April, with just under 15,000 people informed they did not have cancer. Urgent and emergency care services remain busy, with the Welsh Ambulance Service experiencing the busiest May on record. Despite this, the median response time performance was exactly eight minutes, with more than 80 per cent of calls responded to within 15 minutes. The public is urged to call NHS 111 for advice to ensure they receive the right care from the appropriate NHS service for their needs.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Cruel eczema makes my face swell up and covers my body in a raw rash. Then I discovered the game-changing ways to control it - and now my skin looks like THIS
You know how it goes. You look amazing at 3pm on a Wednesday when no one's around, but the second you need to leave the house for something important, your skin decides to have a meltdown. That's my experience anyway. And in my case, by meltdown I mean an eczema flare-up of epic proportions.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Passport prices could rise AGAIN in another blow for British holidaymakers
The cost of a new passport could rise by a whopping £32 in the latest blow for millions of British holidaymakers. Ministers have been urged to increase the current £95 renewal fee to address a growing black hole in the Passport Office's budget. The department recorded a budget shortfall of £223million last year and a £916million deficit over the past five years. The National Audit Office, which scrutinises public spending, has recommended that the Passport Office increase the cost of its services to address the issue. It did not, however, give a figure for how much the passport renewal fees should increase by. According to The Telegraph, the Passport Office, would need to charge each applicant £32 more to overcome last year's shortfall. The cost of renewing passports has already risen significantly in recent years. The department drastically hiked prices for adult passports in February 2023 - from £75.50 to £82.50. Fees then rose again by 7 per cent last year - before an inflation busting increase of 6.7 per cent in April. The Home Office previously said the new fees were necessary to ensure the cost of passport operations is met without relying on taxpayer funding. It added that fees help cover passport processing, consular services for lost or stolen passports, and border operations. Adults must currently pay £94.50 for a new passport, while a one-day renewal costs £222. Nearly seven million new passports were issued last year. Adult passports are valid for ten years, while passports for children are valid for just five. A Home Office spokesperson said there were no 'immediate plans' to increase fees. Meanwhile, the National Audit Office declined to comment on the estimated price hike. The call for higher passport renewal fees came in a wider report by the National Audit Office into government services. A total £340million shortfall was found across all the services looked at - including UK Visas and Immigration, the Court and Tribunals Service and the Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency. The National Audit Office's report concluded: 'Many government departments rely on charging fees to recover the costs of providing services to people and businesses. 'But none of the services we looked at recovered costs consistently, and the charges for the services may not accurately reflect the costs.' 'The government is missing opportunities to deliver efficiencies and share good practice,' it added. 'This poses risks to the financial resilience of public services, the costs of which are likely to be borne by future fee payers.' Gareth Davies, head of the National Audit Office said: 'Government bodies provide important services for the public and businesses, including issuing passports and driving licences, and filing company information. 'But many are not consistently recovering their costs - posing risks to the financial resilience of these services and fairness between users. 'HM Treasury should strengthen how it oversees cost recovery processes and provide more comprehensive guidance to charging bodies.'
