Weant Kyle A, Baker Stephanie N
North Carolina Public Health Preparedness and Response, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Raleigh, NC 27699-1900, USA.
Crit Care Nurs Clin North Am. 2013 Jun;25(2):225-42. doi: 10.1016/j.ccell.2013.02.001. Epub 2013 Mar 1.
Rabies is a devastating encephalitis caused by RNA viruses that use mammals as reservoirs. In the United States, most naturally acquired human cases have come from bats. The use of appropriate preexposure and postexposure prophylaxis can be nearly 100% effective. If prophylaxis is not used, or is implemented incorrectly, the patient may develop clinical rabies, which is almost universally fatal. All health care practitioners should be familiar with the appropriate evaluation of patients presenting with a possible rabies exposure and ensure that expeditious and appropriate prophylaxis is provided to help prevent the development of this lethal disease.
狂犬病是一种由以哺乳动物为宿主的RNA病毒引起的毁灭性脑炎。在美国，大多数自然感染的人类病例都来自蝙蝠。使用适当的暴露前和暴露后预防措施的有效性几乎可达100%。如果不使用预防措施或实施不当，患者可能会发展为临床狂犬病，而临床狂犬病几乎无一例外是致命的。所有医护人员都应熟悉对可能有狂犬病暴露的患者进行适当评估，并确保提供迅速且适当的预防措施，以帮助预防这种致命疾病的发生。
