Boy, 8, critically ill from bat attack
EIGHT-YEAR-OLD boy is in a coma after catching the bat lyssavirus - only the third ever confirmed case in Australia.
The boy was bitten or scratched by a bat in north Queensland about 2½ months ago but his parents did not know about it at the time, according to the state's chief health officer, Jeannette Young.
Dr Young said the case was ''very sad''. The boy was in hospital in Brisbane but the outlook was grim.
People are advised against handling bats as all flying foxes and bats can carry a strain of bat lyssavirus. Photo: Steve Cassell
''He's critically unwell. The previous two cases did not survive and the vast, vast majority of people who contract rabies overseas die,'' she said.
''Very few people survive, unfortunately. But we only have had three cases in Queensland so it is hard to say [what the boy's survival chances are].''
It is not known if the boy was bitten or scratched as he did not tell his parents about the contact with the bat when it happened and is now too sick to say what happened.
He began having fits about three weeks ago and was eventually diagnosed with bat lyssavirus, which is similar to rabies.
His family have been keeping a bedside vigil and have all been offered medication for potential exposure to the virus.
''This is an extraordinarily difficult and distressing time for the family,'' Dr Young said.
The other two cases of the virus in Australia occurred in Queensland in the 1990s.
It can take years for bat lyssavirus symptoms to show up in patients and Dr Young called on anyone who had been bitten or scratched to seek medical attention, even if the incident was years ago.
She did not specify where in north Queensland the boy contracted the virus, saying it would be ''harmful'' for people to think that just because they were not in the area they did not need to go to a doctor for a bat scratch or bite. ''It doesn't make any difference,'' she said.
''We have bats, both flying foxes and bats, that live throughout Queensland and indeed most of Australia and any bat or flying fox can actually carry a strain of the bat lyssavirus.
''You shouldn't handle any bat. There is no specific reason to be concerned about the bats in north Queensland.''
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/national/health/boy-8-critically-ill-from-bat-attack-20130215-2eihq.html#ixzz2LAt1x8Cg