Latest news with #KeiraGlasgow
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Man dies after being bitten by bat with "extremely rare" infection
An Australian man has died from an "extremely rare" rabies-like infection transmitted by a bat bite, health officials said Thursday. The man in his 50s was bitten by a bat carrying Australian bat lyssavirus several months ago, the health service in New South Wales said in a statement. "While it is extremely rare to see a case of Australian bat lyssavirus, there is no effective treatment for it," Keira Glasgow, a director in health protection at NSW Health said in the statement. Glasgow said there were 118 people who required medical assistance after being bitten or scratched by bats in 2024, but this is the first confirmed case of the virus in New South Wales, and the fourth case in Australia. The man from northern New South Wales, who has not been identified, was this week listed as being in a "critical condition" in hospital. Officials said he was treated following the bite and they were investigating to see whether other exposures or factors played a role in his illness. The virus — a close relative to rabies, which does not exist in Australia — is transmitted when bat saliva enters the human body through a bite or scratch. First symptoms can take days or years to appear. Early signs of the disease are flu-like — a headache, fever and fatigue, the health service said. The victim's condition rapidly deteriorates, leading to paralysis, delirium, convulsions and death. There were only three previous cases of human infection by Australian bat lyssavirus since it was first identified in 1996 — all of them fatal. Infection is "very closely related to rabies" People should avoid touching or handling bats, as any bat in Australia could carry lyssavirus, the New South Wales health service said. Only wildlife handlers who are trained, protected, and vaccinated should interact with the flying mammals, it warned. "If you or someone you know is bitten or scratched by a bat, you need to wash the wound thoroughly for 15 minutes right away with soap and water and apply an antiseptic with anti-virus action," it said. "Patients then require treatment with rabies immunoglobulin and rabies vaccine." The virus has been found in species of flying foxes and insect-eating microbats, NSW Health said. The species of bat involved in the latest fatality has not been identified. "Australian bat lyssavirus is very closely related to rabies and will cause death in susceptible people if they become infected and are not treated quickly," said James Gilkerson, infectious diseases expert at the University of Melbourne. The virus was first identified in May 1996 by scientists at the national science agency CSIRO, who examined brain tissue from a flying fox that had been showing "nervous signs" in New South Wales. Later that year, a bat handler in Queensland became ill. "The initial numbness and weakness suffered in her arm progressed to coma and death," the science agency said in an online document on the virus. "Two further cases in Queensland — a woman in 1998 and an eight year old boy in 2013 — resulted in death after being bitten or scratched by a bat," it said. There are subtle differences between the lyssavirus in flying foxes and insectivorous bats, the science agency has found. Infected bats can transmit the virus to people, other bats and other mammals. Last year, at least three people died in North America after being bitten or exposed to a bat. In November, a California teacher died after she was bitten by a bat that presumably had rabies inside her classroom. In October, health officials in Canada announced that a child died from rabies after being exposed to a bat in their room. About a week before that, officials announced a U.S. citizen died from rabies after being exposed to a bat in western Minnesota in July. Why AMC is warning of longer previews at movie theaters Trump administration, EU holding talks in D.C. as tariff deadline nears Why Sean "Diddy" Combs will remain in jail until his sentencing
CBS News
4 hours ago
- Health
- CBS News
Man dies after being bitten by bat carrying "extremely rare" infection in Australia
An Australian man has died from an "extremely rare" rabies-like infection transmitted by a bat bite, health officials said Thursday. The man in his 50s was bitten by a bat carrying Australian bat lyssavirus several months ago, the health service in New South Wales said in a statement. "While it is extremely rare to see a case of Australian bat lyssavirus, there is no effective treatment for it," Keira Glasgow, a director in health protection at NSW Health said in the statement. Glasgow said there were 118 people who required medical assistance after being bitten or scratched by bats in 2024, but this is the first confirmed case of the virus in New South Wales, and the fourth case in Australia. The man from northern New South Wales, who has not been identified, was this week listed as being in a "critical condition" in hospital. Officials said he was treated following the bite and they were investigating to see whether other exposures or factors played a role in his illness. The virus — a close relative to rabies, which does not exist in Australia — is transmitted when bat saliva enters the human body through a bite or scratch. First symptoms can take days or years to appear. Early signs of the disease are flu-like — a headache, fever and fatigue, the health service said. The victim's condition rapidly deteriorates, leading to paralysis, delirium, convulsions and death. There were only three previous cases of human infection by Australian bat lyssavirus since it was first identified in 1996 — all of them fatal. Infection is "very closely related to rabies" People should avoid touching or handling bats, as any bat in Australia could carry lyssavirus, the New South Wales health service said. Only wildlife handlers who are trained, protected, and vaccinated should interact with the flying mammals, it warned. "If you or someone you know is bitten or scratched by a bat, you need to wash the wound thoroughly for 15 minutes right away with soap and water and apply an antiseptic with anti-virus action," it said. "Patients then require treatment with rabies immunoglobulin and rabies vaccine." The virus has been found in species of flying foxes and insect-eating microbats, NSW Health said. The species of bat involved in the latest fatality has not been identified. "Australian bat lyssavirus is very closely related to rabies and will cause death in susceptible people if they become infected and are not treated quickly," said James Gilkerson, infectious diseases expert at the University of Melbourne. The virus was first identified in May 1996 by scientists at the national science agency CSIRO, who examined brain tissue from a flying fox that had been showing "nervous signs" in New South Wales. Later that year, a bat handler in Queensland became ill. "The initial numbness and weakness suffered in her arm progressed to coma and death," the science agency said in an online document on the virus. "Two further cases in Queensland — a woman in 1998 and an eight year old boy in 2013 — resulted in death after being bitten or scratched by a bat," it said. There are subtle differences between the lyssavirus in flying foxes and insectivorous bats, the science agency has found. Infected bats can transmit the virus to people, other bats and other mammals. Last year, at least three people died in North America after being bitten or exposed to a bat. In November, a California teacher died after she was bitten by a bat that presumably had rabies inside her classroom. In October, health officials in Canada announced that a child died from rabies after being exposed to a bat in their room. About a week before that, officials announced a U.S. citizen died from rabies after being exposed to a bat in western Minnesota in July.
Telegraph
6 hours ago
- Health
- Telegraph
Australian man dies from ‘extremely rare' virus after bat bite
A man has died from an incurable and 'extremely rare' rabies-like virus that he caught after being bitten by a bat. The man, who is believed to be in his 50s, was bitten several months ago and infected with Australian bat lyssavirus – a pathogen closely related to rabies. It is the first confirmed case of the virus in a person in New South Wales, and only the fourth human infection since lyssavirus was first identified in Australia in 1996. While ABLV is unique to Australia, in June an injured bat rescued from a garden in the Isle of Wight tested positive for European Bat Lyssavirus. There are two strains of this pathogen and, according to the Bat Conservation Trust, just 59 of 19,000 bats tested since 1986 have been infected in the UK. Two people have been infected in Britain since records began – once in 1902, and again 100 years later in a bat handler in Scotland. 'It is incredibly rare for the virus to transmit to humans,' Keira Glasgow, a director in health protection at New South Wales Health, said on Wednesday. 'But once symptoms of lyssavirus start in people who are scratched or bitten by an infected bat, sadly there is no effective treatment.' Symptoms of lyssavirus can take days, months or even years to emerge. Much like rabies, early signs of the disease are flu-like – including a headache, fever and fatigue. Patients can deteriorate rapidly, with paralysis, delirium, convulsions, and ultimately death. 'Rabies, the disease, is an extremely similar disease of the central nervous system to that which can develop after ABLV [Australia bat lyssavirus] infection, although the two viruses are genetically distinct,' said Dr Ian Mackay, a virologist at the University of Queensland. 'ABLV is a rare passenger of bats but when it is present, it is more often the cause of symptoms in those bats. Once symptoms develop in an infected human, disease is often fatal as there is no cure,' he told The Telegraph However, like rabies, immediate treatment post-exposure can stop symptoms from ever developing – and because the viruses are so similar, rabies immunoglobin and rabies vaccines are used to treat lyssavirus infections. However Trish Paterson, a wildlife carer for more than 30 years who ran the Australian Bat Clinic and Wildlife Trauma Centre in Queensland, told ABC News that it was worrying that the man had reportedly sought treatment – though it is not clear how quickly. 'If he received treatment [directly after the bite] and still contracted the virus, that would be a little bit concerning,' she said. In Australia, 118 people required medical assessment after they were bitten or scratched by bats last year. Public health officials this week urged anyone who came into contact with a bat to seek immediate treatment. But it is currently not clear how widespread the virus is within the country's bat population. According to figures from Wildlife Health Australia as of June 2024, 420 sick bats have tested positive with lyssavirus since 2001, including 97 in New South Wales. The disease affects a variety of bats and prevalence in wild populations is not clear – although studies in the early 2000s suggested it was less than 1 per cent, Wildlife Health Australia said. 'We don't know much about ABLV dynamics in bats,' Dr Alison Peel, a veterinarian and wildlife disease ecologist at the University of Sydney, wrote on the social media site BlueSky. 'But the risk to people is higher when contact is more likely – [for example] during food shortages for flying foxes, when they are more likely to search for food in backyards, or extreme heat events, when bats suffer and die in large numbers and people try to help. 'So, it's important to ensure that we protect bat habitats and allow space for them to play their important natural roles in ecosystems, without forcing them to come into contact with humans,' she said.
Sky News AU
14 hours ago
- Health
- Sky News AU
NSW man dies after contracting state's first confirmed case of lyssavirus after bat bite, health authorities confirm
A New South Wales man has died after contracting the state's first recorded case of Australian bat lyssavirus. In a statement on Thursday, a NSW Health spokesperson confirmed the man had succumbed to the virus after fighting for life in hospital. "We express our sincere condolences to the man's family and friends for their tragic loss," a spokesperson said. "While it is extremely rare to see a case of Australian bat lyssavirus, there is no effective treatment for it." On Wednesday, NSW Health said the man was in a critical condition after being bitten by a bat several months ago. The situation sparked an urgent warning from authorities, urging the public to avoid touching or handling bats given the risk of contracting lyssavirus. Australian bat lyssavirus (ABLV) is typically spread from bats to humans when the virus in the animal's saliva enters the body through a bite or scratch. The illness, which can be fatal if left untreated, is a considered to be closely related to the rabies virus. Earlier, Director in Health Protection at NSW Health Keira Glasgow described the situation as "very tragic" particularly given the man sought treatment following his injury. Ms Glasgow confirmed the man was the first person in NSW to contract the virus, and fourth on a national level. She urged people to assume any bat in Australia can carry lyssavirus, adding urgent medical assessment is crucial if a person is bitten or scratched by the animal. "You will need to wash the wound thoroughly for 15 minutes right away with soap and water and apply an antiseptic with anti-virus action, such as betadine, and allow it to dry," she said. "You will then require treatment with rabies immunoglobulin and rabies vaccine." ABLV can be carried by species of flying foxes, fruit bats and insect-eating microbats. NSW Health has reminded Australians the best form of protected from infection is to not touch bats. "If you see a bat in distress, injured or trapped on the ground, do not try to rescue it," health authorities said. Members of the community should contact their local wildlife rescue group or trained experts at wildlife rescue organisation WIRES via 1300 094 737 if they notice a bat in distress.
The Age
15 hours ago
- Health
- The Age
‘No effective treatment': Man dies in NSW's first case of rare bat disease
A man from northern NSW has died in the state's first case of Australian bat lyssavirus, a rare disease closely related to rabies. Lyssavirus is transmitted from infected bats to humans when bat saliva containing the virus enters the body through a bite or scratch. The man aged in his 50s died in hospital, NSW Health confirmed on Thursday. 'We express our sincere condolences to the man's family and friends for their tragic loss,' a spokesperson said. More than 100 people required medical assessment after being bitten or scratched by bats last year, but this is the first confirmed case of the virus in NSW. Loading 'It is incredibly rare for the virus to transmit to humans, but once symptoms of lyssavirus start in people who are scratched or bitten by an infected bat, sadly there is no effective treatment,' Keira Glasgow, a director in health protection at NSW Health, said on Wednesday. Glasgow said people should assume any bat in Australia could be carrying lyssavirus, and only trained and vaccinated wildlife workers should handle them. Lyssavirus is closely related to rabies – one of the most notorious and difficult to treat diseases humans can catch from animals. Anyone bitten or scratched by a bat must seek urgent medical care. The wound must be washed immediately and thoroughly for 15 minutes with soap and water, then applied with antiseptic containing antivirus properties, such as betadine, and allowed to dry.
