Why do rabies victims foam at the mouth

Stay with a person who is having a seizure until it is over. Once the convulsions stop and someone starts to regain consciousness, they can be rolled onto their side.

It is essential to make sure their mouth and nose are clear. Cover the person with a blanket or jacket and allow them to rest, checking every few minutes that they are still awake and breathing normally.

People who have epilepsy may not need to seek emergency care every time they have a seizure. After having a seizure, the most important thing many people need is rest and hydration. Having a seizure is stressful and exhausting for the entire body. Anyone who experiences a seizure for no known cause, a severe seizure, or one that is different than normal for them, should seek emergency medical care.

People should also seek emergency care if someone has a seizure that lasts longer than 5 minutes, or if they are not fully conscious with a normal breathing rate 10 minutes after the seizure ended. Doctors will monitor a person who has had a seizure to make sure essential bodily functions, such as heart rate and breathing, are normal. They may also give them medication. Some people with seizure disorders and types of epilepsy require lifelong management medications called anti-seizure or anti-convulsive drugs.

Once rabies has formed an infection, there is no cure for the disease. People who think they may have been exposed to the rabies virus or infected animals must seek immediate and early immunization to avoid life-threatening complications. Foaming or frothing at the mouth is a very uncommon symptom, but it is associated with serious health complications. These include drug overdoses, seizures, and rabies infections. If someone starts to foam at the mouth, a bystander should roll them on their side, make sure their airways are clear, and call emergency services or take them to the nearest hospital.

If left untreated, the conditions known to cause foaming at the mouth can all lead to serious health complications, most often organ failure, coma, and death. What are common triggers that may induce a seizure?

Someone with rabies can produce a lot of saliva spit , and muscle spasms in their throat might make it hard to swallow. This causes the "foaming at the mouth" effect that has long been associated with rabies infection. It also leads to a fear of choking or what seems like a "fear of water," another well-known rabies sign. Rabies is caused by the rabies virus.

Infected animals have the virus in their saliva. The virus enters the body through broken skin or the eyes, nose, or mouth, and travels through nerves to the brain. There it multiplies and causes inflammation and damage. Bites from a wild infected animal cause most U. Raccoons are the most common carriers, but bats are most likely to infect people. Skunks and foxes also can be infected, and a few cases have been reported in wolves, coyotes, bobcats, and ferrets. Small rodents such as hamsters, squirrels, chipmunks, mice, and rabbits are rarely infected.

Widespread animal vaccination has made transmission from dogs to people rare in the U. In the rest of the world, exposure to rabid dogs is the most common cause of transmission to humans. Rabies is not contagious from person to person. The virus most often spreads through bites from an infected animal. Animal control and rabies vaccination programs for dogs and cats are prevalent. Some animals are more likely to transmit rabies than others.

You can protect yourself against rabies. There are many tips you can follow to avoid being bitten and potentially exposed to rabies, such as: Avoid approaching strange animals. Do not handle downed bats. Report bites to the proper officials for example, the local rabies control authority, animal control officer, game warden, or local health department employee. For children, a teacher or parent is a good reporting resource.

Do not feed wildlife. Do not handle sick, injured or dead animals. Teach children how to correctly behave around an animal to avoid being bitten. You are more likely to be exposed to rabies by a pet than by wildlife.

Rabies incubation periods can vary. There are various lab tests for rabies — and not all of them for humans require the subject to be dead. In the media Radio interview with Pamela Wilson and Dr. Contributors Written by Pamela J. Written by Pamela J. Read more from Pamela J. Written by Rodney E. Rohde, PhD. Rohde, PhD Dr. Twitter Facebook LinkedIn. Read more from Rodney E. Related stories. The many faces of rabies Pamela J.

Rohde, PhD September 22, 20 mins. Tips for success on your path to tenure Rodney E. Rohde, PhD September 17, 20 mins. Rohde, PhD July 15, 8 mins. It is also possible, but quite rare, that people may get rabies if infectious material from a rabid animal, such as saliva, gets directly into their eyes, nose, mouth, or a wound. Human rabies deaths in these areas are estimated to be in the tens of thousands, possibly as high as 55, The number of cases in humans is low in the United States, with an average of two to three a year, according to the CDC.

The early symptoms of rabies in people are similar to that of many other illnesses, including fever, headache, and general weakness or discomfort. As the disease progresses, more specific symptoms appear and may include insomnia, anxiety, confusion, slight or partial paralysis, excitation, hallucinations, agitation, hypersalivation increase in saliva , difficulty swallowing and hydrophobia fear of water. Death usually occurs within days of the onset of these symptoms.

Infected animals may show extreme behavioral changes such as restlessness or aggression. As the virus progresses, an infected animal may become hypersensitive to touch, light and sound. Paralysis of the throat and jaw muscles may follow, resulting in the well-known symptom of foaming at the mouth. The major source of rabies in humans can be eliminated through ensuring adequate animal vaccination and control and educating those at risk. Visit your veterinarian with your pet on a regular basis and keep rabies vaccinations up-to-date for all cats, ferrets and dogs.

Call animal control to remove all stray animals from your neighborhood since these animals may be unvaccinated or ill. Do not approach an unknown or stray animal, or break up any animal fighting, because you can get bitten.