A teenaged girl who contracted rabies from a bat and received experimental therapy recovered and was discharged from the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin (Wauwatosa).
The girl is the first known person to survive rabies without receiving a vaccine. The bat bit the girl on Sept. 12, 2004. She reportedly thought that the bite was just a scratch, and she and those with her assumed, incorrectly, that only healthy bats could fly, so she did not see a doctor for a vaccine.
She presented to Children's Hospital on Oct. 18 with symptoms of rabies, including slurred speech and fluctuating consciousness. The doctors induced a temporary coma and treated her with antiviral drugs to boost her immune system and allow her natural immunity to fight the virus. The details of the treatment were being kept under wraps while the doctors prepared to publish their account of the case.
The girl was discharged in early January, according to a hospital press statement. Although her physicians declared her medically sound, she will continue therapy to refine her speech and regain strength.
A rabies vaccine prevent the disease if given within days of exposure, but is useless in saving the patient's life in advanced cases.