Algunas consideraciones sobre las condiciones actuales de la rabia en las Américas

Abstract

Rabies is one of the most ancient and persistent diseases of man and animals. It has existed in Latin America for at least five centuries although the records give very little information about the many deaths caused by the disease

During the last 12 years, 2,407 cases of human rabies have been reported in the Americas, and statistics indicate that the average annual incidence of human rabies rose from 168 in the period 1954 to 1959 to 225 in the period 1960 to 1966. Foremost among the countries in the Continent notifying cases of human rabies in the period 1954 to 1965 was Colombia with 710 followed by Mexico with 487 and Argentina with 254

The migration of the rural population to the cities in search of improved living conditions has worsened the housing problem and given rise to unsanitary shanty towns surrounding many of the large Latin American capitals. Peasants move to the shanty towns with their dogs and increase the already dense dog population. In Mexico and in Greater Buenos Aires for example the dog population is 500,000; in Montevideo it is estimated to be 408,000 and in Lima, 300,000. The very density of this dog population offers favorable conditions for the persistence and spread of rabies. The number of cases of dog bite is also increasing; there were 1,492 cases in Canada in 1963 and 10,000 in the United States. In that year, 77,526 persons were bietten by dogs in Mexico ...(AU)