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The first records of rabies appear around 2300 BC and the disease has long been associated with domestic dogs. Today, it remains a significant public health risk to around 75% of the world’s population, occurring in around 150 countries.
This article examines the impact of the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic on rabies control efforts. In this study, researchers found that a range of control measures and health services were impacted, particularly dog vaccination.
Goa State in India has reported no human deaths from rabies with a 10-fold reduction in canine rabies. Goa has also been declared a ‘rabies controlled area’; the first geographic zone to earn controlled status of any zoonotic disease.