Abstract

TAPIA-PEREZ, Rafael; BARREDA-DE LA CRUZ, Miguel  and  ALVAREZ-GAMERO, Julio C.. Rabies encephalitis or post-vaccination encephalitis in a pregnant woman with a surviving premature neonate. An. Fac. med. [online]. 2021, vol.82, n.4, pp.331-335. ISSN 1025-5583.  http://dx.doi.org/10.15381/anales.v82i4.20363.

Human rabies is a serious infection that requires application of rabies serum and vaccine, which can cause post-vaccination acute demyelinating encephalomyelitis (ADEM). We report a 27-year-old pregnant woman who has been bitten by a dog on her right hand. She didn't receive rabies serum but she received 5 vaccinations. With last vaccination she presents hand numbness, malaise, fever, hydrophobia, altered consciousness. A cesarean section was performed and the patient was induced a therapeutic coma. Nape skin biopsy and inoculation in mice were negative, while seroneutralization in mice and detection of anti-rabies antibodies were positive. In umbilical cord, mouse seroneutralization was positive. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed lesions compatible with ADEM. By some criteria, it could be rabies; however, the chart would be more compatible with ADEM.

Keywords : Rabies Virus; Rabies Vaccines; Encephalitis; Pregnancy; Infant Premature.

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