10 May 2005

France declared rabies free

France has been declared officially rabies free following a six-month period during which authorities checked for evidence of terrestrial rabies transmission in the south-western area of the country.  This area was declared rabies-infected in August 2004 [1] after a dog with rabies was illegally imported from Morocco .  The rabid dog had come into contact with a large number of both people and animals [2].

As a result of the incident, the Health Protection Agency and NaTHNaC issued advice that rabies post-exposure vaccination should be considered for rabies prone exposures such as dog bites, that occurred in the three Départments of Gironde, Dordogne, and Lot et Garonne during a six month period from September 2004 to the end of February 2005, or until France declared the incident over [1, 3].  As no secondary cases were detected in animals during this period, the area has been declared rabies free again, officially since 4 March 2005 .  Consequently, such exposures can now be considered very low risk.  

Travellers should be aware, however, that each potential rabies exposure should be assessed carefully, since further importations of animals are likely to occur into France and other rabies free countries, and rabies remains endemic in countries surrounding the European Union including Morocco.   France has held an information campaign to dissuade people from bringing potentially rabid animals back to France [4].

Although this incident is over, concerns have been raised about rabies control in western Europe where there is evidence of rabies transmission in foxes in Germany [5]. Although most EU countries are rabies-free, the risk that rabies will re-establish itself continues as long as rabies remains endemic in wildlife in the rest of the Eurasian continent. 

References

1. Health Protection Agency. Rabies infected area in France

and new rabies guidance published.  Commun Dis Rep CDR Wkly

[serial online] 2004 [cited 10 May 2005 ]; 14 (51): news. 

Available at:

http://www.hpa.org.uk/cdr/archives/2004/cdr5104.pdf

2. Health Protection Agency. Rabid dog in south west France . 

Commun Dis Rep CDR Wkly [serial online] 2004

[cited 10 May 2005 ]; 14 (36): news. 

Available at:

http://www.hpa.org.uk/cdr/archives/2004/cdr3604.pdf

3. National Travel Health Network and Centre.

Rabies in a dog in south-west France , update.

Clinical Update. Online resource (cited 10 May 2005 ).

Available at:

http://www.NaTHNaC.org/pro/clinical_

updates/rabies_france_update1.htm

4. Ne ramenez pas la rage parmi vos souvenirs de vacances. 

In Le ministère de l'Agriculture, de l'Alimentation, de la Pêche

et de la Ruralité website [online]. 

Paris , France : Le ministère de l'Agriculture, de l'Alimentation,

de la Pêche et de la Ruralité, 7 April 2005 [cited 27 April 2005 ]. 

Available at: http://agriculture.maapar1.agriculture.gouv.fr/

spip/actualites.rage_a4635.html

5. Rabies cases spark emergency action. 

In: ProMED report [online], archive no 20050414.1074. 

Boston US: International Society for Infectious Diseases,

14 April 2005 [cited 27 April 2005 ]. 

Available at: http://www.promedmail.org/pls/promed/

f?p=2400:1202:6749482980643999146::

NO::F2400_P1202_CHECK_DISPLAY,F2400_

P1202_PUB_MAIL_ID:X,28677

Links

Health Protection Agency. Rabies risk in France and

trends in terrestrial rabies in Western Europe .

Commun Dis Rep CDR Wkly [serial online] 2005 (cited 10 May 2005 ); 15 (17): news.

Available at:

http://www.hpa.org.uk/cdr/archives/2005/cdr1705.pdf

National Travel Health Network and Centre.

Rabies. Travel Health Information Sheet. Online resource

(cited 10 May 2005 ).

Available at: http://www.NaTHNaC.org/travel/factsheets/rabies1.htm