On Thursday, New Zealand announced its first fatal case of rabies. Doctors applied All infection control measures The Ministry of Health said the two hospitals where the patient was treated, first in Whangarei (North) and then in the neighboring city of Auckland.
The ministry said in a statement “Transmission of rabies from one person to another is extremely rare, almost unknown, and therefore there is no risk to the public.” Rabies is usually transmitted through the saliva of an infected animal that bites a person.
New Zealand has no rabies in its animals or in its human population.
The patient, who was not identified, was suspected of having the disease when he was admitted to hospital in early March. Lab results later confirmed it was the first case of rabies in New Zealand, which has a population of five million.
The Ministry of Health said so “New Zealand has no rabies in animals or humans, and this condition does not affect our status as a rabies-free country.”
In addition, the Director of Public Health, Nick Jones, warned against this “Travellers should be aware, however, that thousands of cases of rabies are reported each year worldwide, including in a number of countries in our region.”
