Zoonoses control - Bat rabies, United Kingdom

Overview

United Kingdom Four people in the vicinity of Newhaven, on the south coast of England, are thought to have been in contact since 30 May with an insectivorous bat with rabies. Three have already received vaccine and immunoglobulin as recommended and the fourth, presently abroad, is being traced. Further enquiries have been made to establish whether other people or animals may have been in contact with the bat, and where the bat is likely to have come from. One of the contacts noticed that the bat was behaving oddly on 30 May. After euthanasia on 3 June, the bat carcass was sent to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food’s (MAFF) Central Veterinary Laboratory, where the diagnosis of rabies was confirmed. The room where the bat was housed was declared to be infected and in need of cleansing and disinfection, and the movement of other bats therein was restricted.