Surin: Timeline of woman who died from rabies - 101 people potentially infected

[webfact]

Thai caption on the picture: Everyone dies from rabies. It seems incredible that this was misdiagnosed

 

A 39 year old woman in Surin has died from rabies. 

 

The authorities say it is a disease that everyone dies from if not protected by vaccine. 

 

They have urged people to to get vaccinated and to have their pets jabbed. 

 

Sanook's story featured a timeline for the woman's descent to death but the media made no attempt to explain how such a case could apparently be so badly misdiagnosed, notes Thaivisa.

 

The woman had a coffee shop in a village and lived with her husband and mother and father.

 

They looked after 12 cats and two dogs. She took in a stray cat that subsequently died. 

 

On May 7th she started having symptoms of pain and hydrophobia (not wanting to drink).

 

On May 8th and 9th she was very thirsty but refused to drink. 

 

These are clear signs of rabies. Hydrophobia is a common name sometimes given to the disease that when symptoms show is always fatal.

 

By May 10th she was so tired that her husband drove her to Samrong Thap Hospital. 

 

Incredibly she was sent home and on the 11th was no better.

 

She was taken in a private car again to the same hospital where she was given pills for a stomach problem and hypertension. 

 

She went home again and her hydrophobia worsened and now 1669 was called and an ambulance picked her up and took her to ER.

 

She was now convulsing and foaming at the mouth and was transferred to Surin hospital.

 

By 12th May she was transferred to a specialist rabies unit where samples of saliva, hair and urine were taken for analysis in Nonthaburi.

 

Just after she was officially diagnosed as having rabies she died on May 15th at 2.43 pm. 

 

Thirty members of the public and 71 healthcare workers came into contact with her. 

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2021-05-22

 

- Whatever you're going through, the Samaritans are here for you

- Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates

[clivebaxter]

Shocking medical mal practice and the best reason for the extermination of stray cats and dogs, nothing will change though

[KeeTua]

51 minutes ago, webfact said:

Thirty members of the public and 71 healthcare workers came into contact with her. 

Unless those 101 people got organ transplants from the woman they have little to worry about.

 

"Although it’s rare, rabies transmission human to human can also occur, but only through organ transplantation."
https://medi-call.id/blog/en/rabies-transmission-human-to-human/

[AndyAndyAndy]

In ~8 years in Thailand I already got vaccinated twice for rabbies. First time it was 5 000 Baht for 5 doses (city hospital). Second time 3000 Baht for 5 doses (village hospital). Both time payed it myself, price included everything. If you were recently vaccinated you can get only 3 booster shots. But I didn't have paperwork from the first one.

[bestie]

now I'm scared. 

[AndyFoxy]

Rabies/Covid/Dengue Mutant strain.

[Surelynot]

I thought you had to be bitten?.......Can't imagine she bit many people during the time she was infected.

[2 is 1]

44 minutes ago, Surelynot said:

I thought you had to be bitten?.......Can't imagine she bit many people during the time she was infected.

Even if you have small cut in your skin and infected animal lick that one you get it! Yeah maybe woman not lick everybody but in case where people can get it. 

[dlclark97]

2 hours ago, Surelynot said:

I thought you had to be bitten?.......Can't imagine she bit many people during the time she was infected.

Can also get from just being scratched.  Rabies is nothing to fool with here as it is fairly common throughout the country.  The shots are cheap and very little, if any, discomfort either getting them or in aftereffects.  Bites or scratches get to a medical facility and get the shots.  Once symptoms appear it is too late. 

[mrfill]

5 hours ago, clivebaxter said:

Shocking medical mal practice and the best reason for the extermination of stray cats and dogs, nothing will change though

 

So you're saying because the hospital screwed up big time, all stray animals should be exterminated?

 

Don't you think the hospital bears quite a lot of responsibility here?

 

[ukrules]

1 hour ago, mrfill said:

 

So you're saying because the hospital screwed up big time, all stray animals should be exterminated?

 

Don't you think the hospital bears quite a lot of responsibility here?

 

I doubt it, once she was ill the outcome was guaranteed.

 

How long ago did the cat die? It can in some extreme cases take a year to develop rabies based on what I've read in the past.

 

 

[Rampant Rabbit]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

They looked after 12 cats and two dogs.

Looked  after about as  vague as the Thais  like it, does  that mean throwing out some food everyday then letting them wander the streets? Most Thais  have absolutely  no idea what "looking after" really means.

[clivebaxter]

2 hours ago, mrfill said:

 

So you're saying because the hospital screwed up big time, all stray animals should be exterminated?

 

Don't you think the hospital bears quite a lot of responsibility here?

 

No, because rabies is about the worst way you can die all strays should be killed, which they should be anyway.

[scubascuba3]

3 hours ago, dlclark97 said:

The shots are cheap

Not really, having post bite shots can be 4k-11k, even shots beforehand would be 1k+

[pacovl46]

7 hours ago, AndyAndyAndy said:

In ~8 years in Thailand I already got vaccinated twice for rabbies. First time it was 5 000 Baht for 5 doses (city hospital). Second time 3000 Baht for 5 doses (village hospital). Both time payed it myself, price included everything. If you were recently vaccinated you can get only 3 booster shots. But I didn't have paperwork from the first one.

I had to go on a business trip to Pakistan back in 2017. I went online to see which vaccinations are recommended and one for rabies was amongst them. So I went to see my doctor because I had to refresh some of the other vaccinations anyway and I asked him about a rabies vaccine and he recommend not get it because apparently it’s nasty and because of the side effects it can have and because it’s not necessary to get it unless someone works with animals that could be infected. He said it’s better to wait until you actually do get bitten and then to go straight to the hospital to get rabies shots. 
 

So, now I’m curious, how were your rabies shots? Did you have severe side effects or any other complications and why did you get vaccinated to begin with, did you get bitten?

[Ventenio]

get your rabies shots in THAILAND, not back home.   got them a few years back....

 

old, can't remember.  4-5 shots, couple thousand baht.  

 

but now i play with stray cats, dogs, skunks, foxes, wild boar...........oh wait, that was my ex-wife

 

anyhow, that's a different clinic and pills....haha

[BusyB]

Jesus wept!

[AndyAndyAndy]

1 hour ago, pacovl46 said:

I had to go on a business trip to Pakistan back in 2017. I went online to see which vaccinations are recommended and one for rabies was amongst them. So I went to see my doctor because I had to refresh some of the other vaccinations anyway and I asked him about a rabies vaccine and he recommend not get it because apparently it’s nasty and because of the side effects it can have and because it’s not necessary to get it unless someone works with animals that could be infected. He said it’s better to wait until you actually do get bitten and then to go straight to the hospital to get rabies shots. 
 

So, now I’m curious, how were your rabies shots? Did you have severe side effects or any other complications and why did you get vaccinated to begin with, did you get bitten?

 

I had no side effects.

 

Yes, I was bitten both times.

[bojo]

Bitten by cat in Samui in 2010. Went following day to Samui International on Chaweng beach road. Initial shot followed up by another 2 or 3 , I forget exactly. Painless (even though I heard scaremongering bar stool stories about 12 inch needles into the abdomen!) and no side affects and cost about 2/3K I seem to remember. I do remember at the time researching rabies in Thailand as I kept getting different opinions about it's prevalence and seeing an online article about the British glamour model Sam Fox getting bitten etc etc.............made a beeline for Samui Inter....................

[Bundooman]

7 hours ago, Surelynot said:

I thought you had to be bitten?.......Can't imagine she bit many people during the time she was infected.

No. You are wrong.

A small scratch from a rabid animal, cat, dog, bird of prey, or many other creatures that can carry the rabies virus, are possible transmitters of rabies.

Even saliva from a rabies infected animal, in contact an open wound, (cat licking) for what ever reason, can result in rabies. It is a fatal disease. 

 

I have been injected with the rabies vaccine a number of times. 

Once in Koh Samui -scratched by a kitten that suddenly attacked my hand trailing in the sand - I didn't know the cat was there.

Again on Kata beach in Phuket when a puppy did the same thing.

Thirdly, in Chiangmai, when a cat got trapped in the shed of a house I was renting. I accidentally trod on its tail as it shot out of the door and it instictively bit my ankle, the  achilles heel, extremely painful.

Lastly, in a Surin village, stupidly handling an owl which  broke the skin on my arm and produced a small amount of blood.

In each incident. I went to the local doctor, who vehemently  recommended a Rabies injection. None were really expensive. A few hundred Baht.

However, my first injection, in the mid-90s was one of the first where you had 5 injections over one month. Even this was a huge improvement on the one injection into your abdomen, which I understand, was unbelievably painful.

As a product of the Royal Navy, circa 1960, you might want research the 1949, b&W short video of an Indian guy with Rabies.  The frothing at the mouth, the hideous actions of the poor guy and his ultimate demise is one of the reasons I sought medical advice for my pitiful encounters with animals away from UK.

 

UK, I might add, is probably the only country, worldwide, that has the most stringent conditions for animal entry into the country. Even so, numerous foreigners try to avoid the regulations, occasionally resulting in Rabies outbreaks - quickly contained, thankfully.

Up to you.

[NE1]

I hope the family take the hospital to court . What ignorance.

[Dcheech]

If bodily fluids come in contact with exposed tissue you can get infected, real minute amounts too. Scratches are common routes of infection, in later stages, as they become violent and foam at the mouth. The spittle is a disease vector. However days before she went full hydrophobic, when they just thought she had a fever,  if she had spit on her hand, and touched you or wiped it on you, you might get it that way. Even if you about certain you did not get infected but you were around here, are you really going to risk it and not get vaccinated?!

 

Hydrophobia is 100% lethal and an extremely painful, horrible way to die. While not mentioned, not uncommon to euthanize the victim.  

[unblocktheplanet]

10 hours ago, AndyAndyAndy said:

In ~8 years in Thailand I already got vaccinated twice for rabbies. First time it was 5 000 Baht for 5 doses (city hospital). Second time 3000 Baht for 5 doses (village hospital). Both time payed it myself, price included everything. If you were recently vaccinated you can get only 3 booster shots. But I didn't have paperwork from the first one.

The protocol you suggest is for someone who has been infected with rabies. Single dose vaccine + boosters at Thai Red Cross was less than B1,000.

[jak2002003]

30 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

The protocol you suggest is for someone who has been infected with rabies. Single dose vaccine + boosters at Thai Red Cross was less than B1,000.

Agree. I can't understand why people are spending such high sums of money for anti rabies shots!

 

I got my lot after I was bitten badly by a street dog out in the countryside when I cycled past it. 

 

Cost less than 1000 baht for the course of injections at the local hospital. 

 

I suspect some posters are getting ripped off at some fancy pants private hospital 

 

[jak2002003]

Hope they catch and test all the other cars the lady was looking after...and the dogs. The sick cat could have passed the virus onto all of them????

[MrJ2U]

Fascinating podcast about a survivor of rabies by "radiolab".

 

Interesting how the disease stops you from wanting you to drink as all the contagion is in the saliva.  Drinking water would dilute it and wash it down your throat making it harder to spread.

 

[NancyL]

When we moved to Thailand nearly 20 years ago, Hubby and I realized we didn't have appropriate vaccinations.  So, we went to Chiang Mai Ram Hospital and asked what vaccinations we should have, given we were living in the city, with occasional trips to the countryside.

 

It was amazing how we had different recommendations.  I I was told to get preventative rabies vaccines, even though we're not especially fond of going into wats and interacting with the stray dogs.  I think Hubby was told to get some other vaccines, but I can't remember what.  They thought he'd be trekking in Burma.

 

 

 

 

[bradiston]

1 hour ago, jak2002003 said:

Agree. I can't understand why people are spending such high sums of money for anti rabies shots!

 

I got my lot after I was bitten badly by a street dog out in the countryside when I cycled past it. 

 

Cost less than 1000 baht for the course of injections at the local hospital. 

 

I suspect some posters are getting ripped off at some fancy pants private hospital 

 

I was bitten by a dog in Thailand and went on a 5 shot rabies vax course that incidentally spanned a trip to Phnom Penh. My travel insurance paid, strangely. Just kept the receipts. Came to about £100.

[GroveHillWanderer]

Unfortunately for this poor woman, by the time she went to the hospital it wouldn't have mattered what they did, once a person starts showing clinical symptoms, it is already too late.

 

If you are bitten, scratched or licked on broken skin by an animal of unknown vaccination status, you should go immediately (or at most, within a day) to a hospital for rabies shots. It's unclear just how long the time window is, but most medical sites indicate that if you wait more than a couple of days after being exposed to rabies, your chances rapidly diminish. Once symptoms start to show, death is inevitable.

 

Looking at the Sanook articles, the first time she went to the hospital, it seems it was only for difficulty breathing, and possibly nausea. There's no indication I can see from the reporting, that the hydrophobia was mentioned to the medical staff on her first visit. They should have realised by the second visit though, when the fear of water was apparently mentioned.

 

It still wouldn't have mattered though, it was sadly too late already.

Edited May 22, 2021 by GroveHillWanderer

[Mutt Daeng]

13 hours ago, pacovl46 said:

I had to go on a business trip to Pakistan back in 2017. I went online to see which vaccinations are recommended and one for rabies was amongst them. So I went to see my doctor because I had to refresh some of the other vaccinations anyway and I asked him about a rabies vaccine and he recommend not get it because apparently it’s nasty and because of the side effects it can have and because it’s not necessary to get it unless someone works with animals that could be infected. He said it’s better to wait until you actually do get bitten and then to go straight to the hospital to get rabies shots. 
 

So, now I’m curious, how were your rabies shots? Did you have severe side effects or any other complications and why did you get vaccinated to begin with, did you get bitten?

Before I left the UK to come and live here in 2009, I knew that there were a lot of stray dogs here, so I had a preventative course of rabies jabs(Verorab I think) at my local clinic. I had to order the vaccine myself (from Boots the chemist) as it was not readily available on the NHS. Cost about £50. I then took it back to my local clinic, who administered the course of jabs free of charge. There were no side effects whatsoever in my case. Last year I was bitten by 2 stray dogs. The first drew blood so I got a course of jabs from my local doctor, costing 500 baht per jab (5 jabs). The second bite didn't break the skin as my cycling shoe took the brunt of the attack, so I didn't bother to get any jabs.

Edited May 23, 2021 by Mutt Daeng