![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_303483834-d68d.jpg\")
\n\t\tBats usually spread rabies through bites or scratches (Picture: Getty Images)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tBats usually spread rabies through bites or scratches (Picture: Getty Images)<\/p>\n
An 11-year-old boy died from rabies less than three weeks after he woke up with a bat lying over his nose and mouth.<\/p>\n
The child contracted the lethal virus despite not having any apparent bite or scratch marks from the interaction, a report has shown.<\/p>\n
Nineteen days after the incident, the boy started presenting with symptoms consistent with the disease, including vomiting, facial \u2018pins and needles\u2019, and numbness.<\/p>\n
He visited the emergency department where he was given supportive care, as there is no cure once the symptoms of the virus develop.<\/p>\n
The parents of the boy \u2013 who has not been named \u2013 agreed to share their son\u2019s story in a bid to raise awareness of the disease.<\/p>\n
\t\t![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_303483810-2e55.jpg\")
\n\t\tThis was Ontario, Canada\u2019s first fatal rabies case in more than 50 years. (Picture: Getty Images)<\/p>\n
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Start your day informed with Metro’s News Updates<\/a> newsletter or get Breaking News<\/a> alerts the moment it happens. <\/p>\n It was the first fatal case of rabies in Ontario, Canada<\/a>, in more than 50 years.<\/p>\n Experts hope that a new report on the boy\u2019s death, published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), will provide critical guidance to help prevent future rabies deaths.<\/p>\n Rabies in humans is almost always fatal, but post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) with a series of rabies vaccines and human rabies immune globulin injections can prevent death if administered promptly, before symptoms develop.<\/p>\n Bats are the most common carriers of rabies in North America, but the disease can also be passed from raccoons, skunks, and foxes.<\/p>\n Bats pose a particularly heightened risk as scratches or bites can be small and difficult to see.<\/p>\n \t\t Report co-author Dr Brian Hummel said: \u2018Any direct human contact with a bat \u2013 even in the absence of a visible bite or scratch \u2013 is an indication for PEP and should be discussed with public health<\/a> authorities.<\/p>\n \u2018This is especially important to consider as we approach the summer<\/a> months, when human\u2013bat encounters are at their peak.\u2019<\/p>\n He says people who may have been in contact with a wild animal that could potentially have rabies should seek medical attention promptly. <\/p>\n \u2018Bats may or may not show classic signs of rabies; hence, any direct human contact with a bat is considered high risk,\u2019 he added.<\/p>\n In the case of possible rabies virus exposure, public health authorities should be notified and PEP should be started in consultation.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tSymptoms of rabies\t\t\t<\/p>\n According to the NHS, symptoms take three to 12 weeks to appear, but can appear after a few days. They can also appear after several months or years.<\/p>\n Rabies is almost always fatal once symptoms appear.<\/p>\n Symptoms include:<\/p>\n Numbness or tingling where you were bitten or scratched<\/p>\n Seeing things that are not there (hallucinations)<\/p>\n Feeling very anxious or energetic<\/p>\n Difficulty swallowing or breathing<\/p>\n Being unable to move (paralysis)<\/p>\n Dr Hummel, a paediatric infectious disease specialist at the McMaster Children\u2019s Hospital and McMaster University, Ontario, continued: \u2018Rabies is almost always fatal, with no established efficacious therapies, making prevention crucial.<\/p>\n \u2018Rabies PEP is highly effective if administered promptly, in consultation with public health authorities, after any direct human contact with a bat, even in the absence of visible lesions.<\/p>\n \u2018In people with neurological symptoms that may be compatible with rabies, clinicians should ask about exposure to potentially rabid animals.\u2019<\/p>\n There have been 27 confirmed cases of human rabies in the UK since 1924. <\/p>\n All but one were contracted abroad, primarily from dog bites in South Asia or Africa, before the patient returned to Britain.<\/p>\n The only recent case where rabies was contracted in the UK was in 2002, when a licensed bat handler in Scotland<\/a> died from a rabies-like virus.<\/p>\n The UK has been completely free of terrestrial rabies \u2013 the kind spread between dogs and foxes \u2013 since 1922. <\/p>\n Arrow Arrow Arrow![\"Bats](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_303483811-6b9e.jpg\")
\n\t\tBats pose a particularly high risk of rabies (Picture: Getty Images)<\/p>\n
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