New York: Soldier dies after contracting rabies abroad

[alert]

http://www.promedmail.org/pls/apex/f?p=2400:1001:3740982952174478::NO::F2400_P1001_BACK_PAGE,F2400_P1001_PUB_MAIL_ID:1000,89941

Archive Number 20110824.2577
Published Date 24-AUG-2011
Subject PRO/EDR> Rabies - USA: (NY) soldier, RFI

RABIES - USA: (NEW YORK), SOLDIER, REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
************************************************** ********
A ProMED-mail post
<http://www.promedmail.org>
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
<http://www.isid.org>

Date: Wed 24 Aug 2011
Source: Syracuse.com, ex The Post-Standard [edited]
<http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2011/08/fort_drum_soldier_diagnosed_wi.html>


Army officials are trying to determine where and how a Fort Drum
soldier contracted rabies but believe he got the virus while stationed
out of the country, officials said this morning [24 Aug 2011].

"The soldier did not contract rabies in New York State, rather, he
likely contracted the disease during a recent overseas deployment,"
Fort Drum officials said in a prepared statement.

The soldier was diagnosed on Friday [19 Aug 2011] and is undergoing
treatment. People in close contact with the soldier are being notified
to assess whether they need post-exposure rabies vaccination,
officials said.

They declined to identify the soldier or disclose where he had been
stationed or was being treated, citing his rights under federal health
privacy laws.

The Army Medical Command is working with the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, the U.S. Forces and Central commands, the
state Health Department and other agencies to determine where and how
the soldier was exposed to rabies, medical command spokesman Jaime
Cavazos said. Pinpointing the place can be difficult because soldiers
are transferred from one operating base to another, he said. "We've
got calls going everywhere," Cavazos said.

"The 10th Mountain Division is focused on taking care of this soldier
and his family," said Julie Cupernall, speaking for Fort Drum
officials. "Our thoughts and prayers are with them."

Rabies is caused by a virus that most often [almost always] is
transmitted through the bite of a rabid animal, according to the CDC
website. Left untreated, the virus attacks the central nervous system
and the brain, resulting in death. People can be successfully treated
using rabies vaccine and, if needed, human rabies immune globulin.

[Byline: John Mariani]

--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail <promed@promedmail.org>

[Fort Drum is a U.S. Army military reservation in Jefferson County,
New York state. Its location is shown in the map at:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Drum>. Fort Drum is home to the
10th Mountain Division.

This report is devoid of information regarding the place and
circumstances of the victim's exposure, presumably for security
reasons, which implies exposure outside of the United States. The
soldier is reported to be under treatment currently, but his condition
is not revealed. If the exposure was recent, vaccination and
administration of immune-globulin would be appropriate, but if the
soldier had been exhibiting symptoms of rabies virus infection prior
to treatment, it must be presumed that he is being treated according
to the Wisconsin protocol (see ProMED-mail references below), and his
eventual recovery is uncertain. Further information would be
appreciated as soon as security considerations permit. - Mod.CP]

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: New York: Soldier under treatment after contracting rabies abroad

Livermore soldier dies of rabies
By Mike Taugher
Contra Costa Times

Posted: 09/04/2011 07:07:36 PM PDT
Updated: 09/04/2011 07:07:37 PM PDT


A Livermore soldier who served in Afghanistan died last week after contracting rabies.

Specialist Kevin R. Shumaker was 24. The Army said he died Wednesday in a stateside hospital.

Shumaker joined the Army in February 2009 and served as a cook with the 615th Military Police Company in Afghanistan from May 2010 to May 2011. He returned last month to Fort Drum in upstate New York, home of the Army's 10th Mountain Division.

...

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_18827370

[alert]

Re: New York: Soldier dies after contracting rabies abroad

http://www.promedmail.org/pls/apex/f?p=2400:1001:4254491944653577::NO::F2400_P1001_BACK_PAGE,F2400_P1001_PUB_MAIL_ID:1000,90425

Archive Number 20110925.2909
Published Date 25-SEP-2011
Subject PRO/AH/EDR> Rabies - USA (08): soldiers, rabies exposure evaluation

RABIES - USA (08): SOLDIERS, RABIES EXPOSURE EVALUATION
************************************************** *****
A ProMED-mail post
<http://www.promedmail.org>
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
<http://www.isid.org>

Date: Wed 21 Sep 2011
Source: Army Medicine Public Affairs [edited]
<http://www.army.mil/article/65926/>


A Fort Drum, N.Y. soldier who recently returned from Afghanistan died
from rabies after contracting the disease from a feral dog while
deployed [see also: ProMED-mail report: Rabies - USA (07): (NY)
soldier, RFI 20110824.2577].

The Army has initiated an investigation to ensure that other service
members who may have been exposed to rabies are identified and receive
preventive treatment, if needed.

The Army Medical Department along with the Department of Defense
(DOD), other uniformed services and the national Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention are working together to expeditiously identify,
evaluate and treat any service members, DOD civilians and contractors
who may have been exposed to rabies while deployed. Individuals who
have already been identified as being exposed to the disease while
deployed are currently receiving appropriate evaluation and treatment.


The importance of receiving appropriate medical evaluation following
contact with a feral/stray animal cannot be overstated. Rabies may not
show any signs or symptoms in the infected animal until late in the
disease, often just days before its death. The animal can, however,
still spread the deadly virus while appearing completely normal.

The rabies virus is transmitted to humans by the saliva of infected
animals through bite wounds, contact with mucous membranes or broken
skin. Humans can become infected and harbor the virus for weeks to
months, and in extremely rare cases, years before becoming ill. During
this incubation period, which averages between one and 3 months,
rabies can be prevented with appropriate treatment, including a series
of vaccinations. Once symptoms occur, however, death is almost always
certain.

All previously deployed Service Members (Active or Reserve Component,
as well as those recently discharged from military service); DOD
civilians and contractors who have had contact with a feral/stray
animal while deployed should be immediately evaluated by medical
personnel. Army Medicine and the DOD are committed to ensuring that
anyone who believes they may have been exposed while deployed is
provided with appropriate medical evaluation and care.

The Army Medical Department and the DOD are dedicated to ensuring the
health and well-being of all Service Members, DOD civilians and
contractors.

We ask the friends and families of those returning from a deployment
after March 2010 to encourage anyone that may have been exposed to
seek medical attention, even if no symptoms are readily apparent.

Call the Wounded Warrior & Family Hotline at 1-800-984-8523 (Stateside
DSN: 421-3700 or Overseas DSN: 312-421-3700) for information on
obtaining a medical evaluation and, if necessary, treatment.

Get more rabies information by visiting these Web sites:
<http://www.cdc.gov/rabies> or
<http://phc.amedd.army.mil/topics/discond/aid/Pages/Rabies.aspx>.

--
Communicated by:
Dr Irene Lai, M.B.,B.S.
International SOS (Australasia)
<irene.lai@internationalsos.com>

[Previously, on 24 Aug 2011, it was reported that a Fort Drum soldier
was being treated for rabies virus infection, possibly contracted
during service overseas (ProMED-mail archived post number
20110824.2577). The soldier did not respond to treatment and died on 4
Sep 2011. According to a subsequent statement, the decorated
24-year-old soldier from Livermore, California was from the 10th
Mountain Division. He was an army cook, and was deployed with the
615th Military Police Company in Afghanistan for a year that ended in
May 2011. Exactly how and where he contracted the illness was under
investigation. But military officials say he did not get the rabies in
New York.

It is now confirmed that the soldier was bitten by a feral dog in
Afghanistan and presumably did not receive post-exposure prophylaxis
at that time. The Army policy document reproduced above is a direct
consequence of this unfortunate event. - Mod.CP]

[Shiloh]

US Army seeking troops bitten by stray animals following rabies death

Source: http://www.stripes.com/news/army/arm...death-1.158120

Army seeking troops bitten by stray animals following rabies death
By Erik Slavin
Stars and Stripes
Published: October 19, 2011

SEOUL ? The Army is redoubling its search for anyone who might have been bitten by a wild animal in Iraq or Afghanistan following the Aug. 31 death of a soldier from rabies, the service?s public health command stated Wednesday...

...Spc. Kevin Shumaker, 24, became the first soldier to die from rabies since 1967 after he was bitten by a stray dog in Afghanistan.

Shumaker told his parents that he received three of six necessary rabies shots in Afghanistan, but did not receive the final shots because they were expired, according to a Contra Costa Times report. Shumaker, a 10th Mountain Division soldier, died at Fort Drum, N.Y., eight months after the bite...

...In September, the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center released a study reporting that servicemembers sustained 20,522 animal bites from January 2001 to December 2010, or about 40 per week. Most were bitten in the United States, where rabies is rare.

Of the 643 troops bitten in Iraq or Afghanistan, only 117 received rabies vaccines, according to the report.

The report notes that some of those bites may have come from military working dogs, which are vaccinated against rabies. The report also stated that the military?s bite statistics are undoubtedly underestimated, since minor bites often go unreported.

?However, even minor animal bite injuries can have serious consequences ? particularly bites inflicted by wild animals,? the report stated.

The rabies vaccine and the immune globulin used to treat unvaccinated bite victims are available at larger bases with medical refrigeration facilities. However, many of the small, primitive forward operating bases in places like Afghanistan don?t have the vaccine or globulin...

[Shiloh]

Re: New York: Soldier dies after contracting rabies abroad

Source: http://vitals.msnbc.msn.com/_news/20...tance-cdc-says

Soldier's rabies death points to vaccine's importance, CDC says

MyHealthNewsDaily

The case of a U.S. Army soldier who died in New York after likely contracting rabies from a dog bite in Afghanistan calls attention to the risk of rabies during travel or deployment to certain countries, and the importance of administering the rabies vaccine promptly to anyone who may have been exposed to the virus, according to a report of the soldier's death released today.

The 24-year-old soldier's death, which occurred in August 2011, was the first rabies death among U.S. service members since 1974, the report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

Unless the rabies vaccine is administered after exposure, an infection with rabies virus, which targets the nervous system, is nearly always fatal...