What's The Deadliest Viral Disease?

Contagious diseases caused by viruses have caused great distress over the years, threatening human lives with outbreaks that take the world by storm. Widepsread events include the 2014 outbreak of ebola in West Africa, H1N1 in 2009 and, most recently, the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.

These outbreaks have been cause for concern with high mortality and rapid infection rates, but it may be surprising to note none of the well-known viral infections are noted as the most deadly. That title has been set aside for a common, but often overlooked, disease with a 100% mortality rate according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): rabies.

The rabies virus is carried in the saliva of infected animals and transmitted to healthy animals or human beings, usually through a bite, and there is no known cure once symptoms appear. In the United States, between one and three people contract the disease each year, but it remains an issue globally with tens of thousands of deaths occurring from rabies each year, mainly in southeast Asia and Africa.

What Is A Virus?

There are a few ways to reduce the risk of contracting the rabies virus. The easiest means of prevention is to vaccinate all pets and keep pets inside or well-supervised when outdoors to prevent them from coming into contact with wild life. Rabbits and other small pets should be kept away from potential predators.

Stray animals should always be reported to local authorities, and people should avoid approaching wild animals. Infected wild animals may appear not to be fearful of humans, which is a symptom of the disease and should raise red flags.

When travelling, jetsetters should get the rabies vaccine prior to a vacation, especially if the destination is a country where rabies or stray animals are more prevalent.