[ad_1]
A bat found on the ground outside Morton Middle School was tested positive for rabies, prompting a warning from the Douglas County Health Department.
A small group of students was seen near the bat, which was found Friday afternoon at the time of the dismissal. It is not known how long the bat had been there.
Dr. Anne O'Keefe, chief epidemiologist at the Department of Health, said Wednesday that anyone who may be in physical contact with the bat should call his health care provider as soon as possible.
O'Keefe said a parent saw a group of students gather around the bat on Friday and immediately contacted the school authorities. The school surveillance video revealed that some students may have been in contact with the bat, which was alive but clearly sick and
O'Keefe said that 20 students were gathered in the area. They believe that some have touched the bat. Nobody had reported his contact with the animal Wednesday afternoon.
Physical contact includes touching, kicking or being touched by the bat, whether or not the student thinks he or she has been bitten. Bat bites are often so light that they may not be noticed, but they may still be enough to infect the individual, she added. The disease is spread by the saliva of an infected animal. Saliva entering the body through cuts or abrasions may also cause an infection.
O'Keefe stated that anyone who had physical contact with the bat had to start post-exposure prophylaxis against rabies. The disease is fatal without treatment.
A call to a doctor on Thursday morning would be enough to organize the necessary protection, she said. Treatment should begin within a week of contact.
The bat was removed and taken to the Nebraska Humane Society on Friday night, O'Keefe said. He was transferred to the Veterinary Diagnostics Laboratory of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln on Monday and tested positive on Tuesday night.
The department is working with Omaha public schools to remedy the situation. OPS sent a letter to the parents and guardians of Morton students on Wednesday afternoon. The health service has also notified health care providers in the region.
Monique Farmer, spokeswoman for the school district, said the officials were unable to identify the students of the video. Any student who may have been in contact with the animal – or know who else might have – is encouraged to talk to an adult: the parents, a teacher or the nurse of the animal. ;school.
Students will have no problem if they manifest themselves. Morton's director will share the message with the students on Thursday. Morton enrolls students in grades six to eight.
"The most important thing right now is to identify who, if anyone has touched it," she said.
Treatment to prevent rabies involves a series of injections, including a dose of immunoglobulin and four or five doses of rabies vaccine.
According to the state's Department of Health, 21 cases of animal rabies have been reported this year in Nebraska, including 16 in bats. No case of human rabies has occurred in Nebraskans since the 1920s.
[ad_2]
Source link
