Children, biggest victims of rabies – WHO
About 40 per cent of rabies deaths globally involve children under 15 years, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said.
It says rabies causes approximately 59,000 human deaths globally each year, mostly across Asia and Africa. This means that children make up about two out of every five rabies deaths.
Domestic dogs are responsible for about 99 per cent of all rabies transmissions to humans.
Although rabies is 100 per cent preventable, once symptoms appear in humans, it is 100 per cent fatal, meaning there is no effective cure and death is certain.
In Ghana, rabies remain a major public health threat.
In 2024, the Veterinary Services Directorate (VSD) reports that 26 human rabies mortalities out of 31 cases across nine regions were recorded.
What is rabies?
Rabies is a viral disease of warm blooded animals that attacks the brain and nervous system.
It enters an animal’s body through the mouth, eyes or nose when an animal with rabies licks another’s face or skin.
In humans, rabies is mainly spread through the saliva of an infected animal, usually through a bite or scratch.
The virus enters the body through a break in the skin and once it gets to the brain, death occurs.
Dogs are responsible for up to 99 per cent of human rabies cases globally but cats, bats, monkeys and other mammals could also transmit the disease.
Why children? Read More
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