Article

2012-05-03 Afghanistan

US Soldier Dies of Rabies From Bite In Afghanistan

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Posted by Glereger Ebbolutch8005 2012-05-03 13:07|| E-Mail|| Front Page|| [11131 views ] Top

#1 He claimed he sought & got medical attention shortly after he was bitten, but the Army found no evidence of that.

Posted by Anguper Hupomosing9418 2012-05-03 18:48|| 2012-05-03 18:48|| Front Page Top

#2 I do not mean to make light of a tragedy. But I read this because I was curious to know if he was bit by a man or a dog.

Posted by RandomJD 2012-05-03 18:55|| 2012-05-03 18:55|| Front Page Top

#3 I'm sure he did get medical treatment -- cleaned and bandaged, most likely. But clearly nobody thought in terms of catching the dog to test for rabies...and given that the bite in January showed no untoward symptoms until mid-August, it was a reasonable assumption, however sadly wrong it turned out.

Posted by trailing wife 2012-05-03 19:28|| 2012-05-03 19:28|| Front Page Top

#4 the bite in January showed no untoward symptoms until mid-August, it was a reasonable assumption, however sadly wrong it turned out. Nope. NOT a reasonable assumption. Rabies is best handled pre-emptively, by vaccination unless and until the offending critter is ruled out by autopsy. It is more than possible the soldier did not tell his caregiver that his wound was a dog bite.
By the way, in the US the prime source of rabies is bats. Nearly all dog rabies deaths in the US for many years now were contracted abroad & symptoms only developed when the victim sought care for rabies symptoms in the US. Have nothing to do with bats, please spread the word.

Posted by Anguper Hupomosing9418 2012-05-03 20:35|| 2012-05-03 20:35|| Front Page Top

#5 The soldier's immediate commander, the medic that treated him, and the medical officer that signed off on that treatment should all be dismissed from the Army. The chain of command is set up so that stupid crap like this is not supposed to happen. Someone should have caught this and ordered a series of rabies inoculations for the soldier.

Posted by Shieldwolf 2012-05-03 21:12|| 2012-05-03 21:12|| Front Page Top

#6 Unless, of course, the soldier did not tell anyone that the wound came from a dog bite. Then like Heinlein said, Stupidity is its own death sentence.

Posted by Shieldwolf 2012-05-03 21:14|| 2012-05-03 21:14|| Front Page Top

#7 Doesn't the Zombie Apocalypse start like this?

Posted by SteveS 2012-05-03 22:20|| 2012-05-03 22:20|| Front Page Top

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