New Tool in the Global Fight against Rabies

Blueprint for Rabies Prevention and Control

Rabies is a viral disease that affects the central nervous system of warm blooded animals, including humans. The disease has a long incubation period (six months) and symptoms may take several weeks to appear after infection. Once symptoms do appear, rabies tends to be fatal. Rabies is regarded as one of the most important zoonotic diseases in the world. Despite being entirely preventable, it still kills more than 55,000 people and millions of animals around the world each year. About 95% of human deaths occur in Asia and Africa. Most human deaths follow a bite from an infected dog.

In an effort to help countries find and implement realistic solutions to reduce the burden of rabies within their borders, the Global Alliance for Rabies Control, the Partners for Rabies Prevention and the FAO's Regional Central Animal Health in Bamako launched, on 24 June 2010, the new on-line "Blueprint for Rabies Prevention and Control" (www.rabiesblueprint.com).

The Blueprint has been developed by global rabies experts to serve as an easy-to-use guide for countries seeking to prevent human rabies by eliminating canine rabies. The Blueprint is applicable to countries where rabies has always been present and also to countries where rabies had been eradicated but has subsequently re-emerged. It brings together recommendations from international health organisations and other global stakeholders involved in rabies control.

The Blueprint is initially available in English and French, with additional languages to follow to amplify the website's usage throughout the world. More chapters addressing wildlife rabies control will be added in the future. The European Commission's Directorate General for Health and Consumers is a member of the Partners for Rabies Prevention (Partners for Rabies Prevention) - an informal network of stakeholders working in the field of rabies control, and supports the Blueprint initiative inter alia by providing translations of the Blueprint. Rabies is a good example of a zoonosis falling within the "Animals + Humans = One health" concept which has been the central theme of EU Veterinary Week campaigns.