This is the season for more close encounters with animals and bats because there is more outdoor activity. We have noted some confusion among health care providers on what to do about such exposures and we thought it would be a good time to review this topic. We still are very fortunate in Washington to have no endemic rabies in animals other than bats. This is not true for many parts of the country, where rabies occurs in dogs, cats, skunks, raccoons, coyotes, and other animals.
Bats remain the only reservoir of rabies in Washington.
It should be noted that the bats that are tested do not represent a random sample, but are bats that are found dead or are sick enough to get caught. We used to advise prophylaxis only when there was clear cut evidence of bat contact or a bite. In those instances, being in the same room as a bat overnight might be cause for prophylaxis of a young child, but for others it is a judgment call. Since the decision whether to offer and then provide PEP can be complex, we encourage you to consult us about animal or bat bites and your other rabies related questions. Dr. Christensen can arrange through the DOH laboratory to have an animal or bat tested when that animal or bat has potentially exposed a human being or another animal.