Early symptoms of rabies

Rabies is a common disease. If many people do not receive timely treatment after being infected with rabies, their lives will be threatened and many sequelae will also be caused to the body. We all know that many dogs and cats carry some viruses in their bodies, and some mad dogs will transmit the viruses to humans after biting them. Even if some people have gone to the hospital to get a tetanus shot, they may still die. It can be seen that this disease is also quite scary.

Patients with rabies may show symptoms such as hydrophobia, pharyngeal muscle spasm, and progressive paralysis in the early stages. In addition, rabies patients also need to pay special attention to their lives, otherwise there is a high possibility that the disease will be transmitted to their relatives and friends around them. So let’s see how to deal with it.

1. Strict isolation in a single room with dedicated care

Rest quietly in bed, avoid all stimulation such as sound, light, wind, etc., insert a large vein catheter to perform high-nutrition therapy, and medical staff must wear masks, gloves and isolation clothing. The patient's secretions, excretions and their contaminants must be strictly disinfected.

2. Actively treat symptoms and prevent various complications

(1) Nervous system. People who are hydrophobic should abstain from food and drink and try to reduce all kinds of stimulation. Convulsive attacks can be treated with phenytoin, diazepam, etc. Cerebral edema can be treated with dehydrating agents such as mannitol and furosemide. If they are ineffective, lateral ventricular drainage can be performed.

(2) Pituitary dysfunction. People with excessive antidiuretic hormone should limit their water intake, and those with diabetes insipidus should be given intravenous fluid replacement and vasopressin.

(3) Respiratory system. Those with difficulty in breathing were given tracheotomy, those with cyanosis, hypoxia, and atelectasis were given oxygen and artificial respiration, and those with pneumonia were given physical therapy and antibacterial drugs. For patients with pneumothorax, lung re-expansion maneuver was performed. Pay attention to prevent aspiration pneumonia.

(4) Cardiovascular system. Most arrhythmias are supraventricular. Those related to hypoxemia should be given oxygen, and those related to viral myocarditis should be treated as myocarditis. For patients with hypotension, give vasoconstrictors and fluid expanders. Patients with heart failure should limit water intake and use cardiotonic drugs such as digoxin. In case of arterial or venous thrombosis, the venous catheter can be exchanged; if there is superior vena cava obstruction, the venous catheter should be removed. Resuscitation was performed on patients with cardiac arrest.

(5)Others. Patients with anemia receive blood transfusions, and those with gastrointestinal bleeding receive blood transfusions and fluid replacement. Those with high fever should use cold mattresses, those with hypothermia should use heated blankets, and those with low or high blood volume should be adjusted in time.

In the early stages of a rabies attack, most patients will experience low fever, nausea, headache, and loss of appetite, because it is easy for children to be bitten by dogs. Therefore, when parents are taking care of their children, they must warn them not to play with dogs they don't know. At the same time, friends who have dogs at home should also take good care of their dogs and vaccinate them regularly.