The State Health Director Directed to Investigate the Case...
The 19-year-old student, Sreelekshmi, decease after contracting rabies in Kerala. Her neighbour’s dog bit Sreelekshmi on May 30th as she was leaving for college in the Padinjakara house in Mankara in Palakkad.
Her relative informed the authorities that she was taken to the doctor where she was vaccinated with the anti-rabies vaccines. Her symptoms showed up late; after two days of the incident, she experienced a high fever and was admitted to the Thrissur Government Medical College.
She died early morning on Thursday around 3 am. The incident caused chaos among the neighbours and family members as the dog had bitten the owner just a day before Sreelekshmi. Reports show that the owner is stable as of now.
Rabies-related deaths have led to a necessary demand for a study and intense investigation. Last year in October, a 7-year-old boy of the Kasargod district died the same fate as Sreelekshmi as he was bitten by a dog and had even taken the first dose of rabies vaccination. He passed away after 3 weeks after the incident.
The anti-rabies vaccine is given over a period of a few weeks and consists of four doses. The rabies-related deaths are increasing, and cases have shown the total failure of the vaccination to prevent deaths of the people exposed to rabies-infected animals.
Health Minister Veena George has taken matters into her hands as she has sought out a report from the director of health services. She has appointed a rapid response team in the Palakkad district to probe the incident.
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