Citation

MSMR 2011; 18(9): 12-15.

Affiliation

Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center, (MCAF-CS) Silver Spring, MD 20904, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2011, U.S. Armed Forces Surveillance Center)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

21988341

Abstract

From 2001 to 2010, there were 20,522 diagnoses of animal bites among U.S. military members. Of these, 643 (3.1%) were documented during medical encounters in combat theater. The majority of bites were "dog bites" and occurred more in males, soldiers, and those in infantry and law enforcement occupations. A small proportion of animal bites received documentation of exposure to or post-exposure prophylaxis for rabies virus. Animal bite avoidance and rabies education should be reinforced before members travel or deploy to areas highly endemic for rabies.

Keywords: Animal Bites; Dog Bites

Language: en