Rabies

Rabies. Probably one of the most infamous viral infections known. Rabies is a virus that is transmitted from infected saliva into the blood stream through a cut or puncture in the skin. Once entering the blood stream, the rabies virus enters the brain, and causes inflammation in the brain. This inflammation causes the symptoms of the disease, which include: Anxiety, stress, and tension, drooling, convulsions, exaggerated sensation or pain at the bit wound, excitability, loss of feeling in an area, paralysis, fever, muscle spasms, restlessness, and a difficulty swallowing (drinking causes spasms of the voicebox). The time from the point between initial infection (bite) and when you actually get sick, called the incubation period, ranges from 10 to 60 days, but in some extremely rare cases can take up to several years. The average incubation period is 3 to 7 weeks. If ever bitten by an animal, it is extremely important to get medical attention immediately, for if you wait even just a few days it is almost 100% untreatable. There have been no reported cases in the U.S. where anyone has received the rabies vaccine promptly after a bit and have developed rabies, although some people have been allergic to the vaccine. The most common death is respiratory failure, caused by the paralysis stopping your diaphragm muscles.