Due to these recent events, the agency issued an alert and requested health personnel to implement response actions to protect the population, especially those who live in areas with the presence of jungle fauna.
The actions include the timely application of anti-rabies prophylaxis in suspected and probable cases, guaranteeing adequate vaccination coverage in companion animals such as dogs and cats; in addition to strengthening epidemiological surveillance for the detection and timely notification of suspected, probable or confirmed cases of human rabies.
Rabies cases in Mexico
Although in 2019 Mexico was recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) as the first country to eliminate rabies transmitted by dogs, as of 2022 cases of rabies transmitted through other animals have been reported.
In January 2023, the rabies virus was confirmed in a gray fox from Sonora and, currently, nine people who had contact with it are being followed up.
During that same month, three suspected cases of rabies transmitted by bats have been reported in Oaxaca. These cases are in addition to the two confirmed cases and one suspected case reported in the state in December 2022.
In Jalisco, in April of last year, a confirmed case of rabies transmitted by a bat was also registered, according to the epidemiological notice published on January 20 of this year.
