1st human rabies death since 1976 reported in Md.

Health officials looking into how person contracted virus

 UPDATED 8:02 AM EDT Mar 13, 2013

The Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene is reporting the state's first human case of rabies in nearly 40 years.

The department confirmed the death of an unnamed Maryland adult on Tuesday. It marks the state's first case of human rabies since 1976.

Officials are still trying to figure out how the person was exposed to the rabies virus. They said they don't know where the person lived. 

No information about the victim is being released to protect the privacy of the family, but health officials said they're assessing the risk of exposure to others who had come in contact with that person. Officials said when people are exposed to rabies, it's usually because of a bite from an infected animal and not from contact with another person.

An average of less than five human rabies cases have been diagnosed yearly in the U.S. in the past decade, the DHMH said. Rabies is rare in the U.S. thanks in large part to pet vaccination laws.

"Our very aggressive cat and dog vaccination requirements have now driven rabies into the wildlife, and by vaccinating our pets, it has created a buffer between the wildlife reservoir and us," explained Maryland Public Health veterinarian Katherine Feldman. 

Rabies in people is preventable through the rabies vaccine and rabies immune globulin. Doctors said there are usually no clear physical symptoms of the virus.

Animals usually found to be infected with rabies include raccoons, foxes, skunks, bats and other wild animals. Unvaccinated dogs and cats can also become infected. Last year, health officials said 324 wild animals with rabies were found in Maryland.

To prevent the virus from spreading, report all animal bites, vaccinate pets and only enjoy wildlife from a distance.

"Say you wake up with a bat in your bedroom. That's not something that should be dismissed," Feldman said.

Doctors said dismissing any bite from an animal is a bad idea.

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