It’s crucial to treat a dog bite wound as soon as possible to lower your risk of developing bacteria. You also should assess the wound to determine the severity.
You may occasionally be able to treat yourself with first aid. In other cases, you’ll need immediate medical treatment.
Whether the dog is yours or belongs to someone else, being bitten may leave you feeling uneasy. Call for assistance if you need medical care rather than driving yourself to the doctor or hospital.
Continue reading to find out what to do after getting bitten by a dog and how to avoid getting infected.
Putting distance between yourself and the dog after a dog bite is the first thing you should do. That can reduce the possibility that you might get bitten again.
After the immediate danger has passed, it’s crucial to find out if the dog has received rabies vaccinations.
Ask for the dog’s vaccination history if the owner is nearby, and make sure to get the owner’s name, contact information, and the veterinarian’s contact information. If possible, also ask to see some sort of ID.
Ask anyone who witnessed the attack if they are familiar with the dog and know where the owner lives if the dog is unaccompanied.
Of course, your own dog could bite you as well. Because of this, be sure to maintain your dog’s rabies vaccination schedule. Even a friendly, gentle animal may sometimes bite.
The level of first aid you provide will depend on how severe the bite is.
Using warm water and soap, wash the area if your skin wasn’t damaged. As a precaution, you can also slather on some antibacterial lotion.
If your skin was broken, gently press on the wound to encourage some bleeding while washing the area with warm soap and water. This will help flush out germs.
Apply a clean cloth to the bite’s wound and gently press down to stop the bleeding if it has already started. Apply an antibacterial lotion next, then cover with a sterile bandage.
Even small dog bite wounds should be checked for signs of infection until they have fully healed.
See a doctor right away if the wound worsens, you experience pain, or if you start to feel feverish.
Dog bites can cause several complications. These include infections, rabies, nerve or muscle damage, and more.
MRSA may also be present in dogs, but there are currently no reports of it being spread by dog bites.
People with diabetes or weakened immune systems may be more susceptible to infection. Consult a doctor if you experience symptoms of infection after being bitten by a dog.
A deep bite can harm the skin’s blood vessels, muscles, and nerves. Even if the wound appears to be small, such as from puncture marks, this can still happen.
Large dog bites can cause broken, splintered, or fractured bones, particularly in the hands, feet, or legs.
A serious viral disease that affects the central nervous system is rabies. Within a few days of infection, it can cause death if untreated.
If you have been bitten by a dog and are unsure of their vaccination history or are aware that they are not current on their rabies vaccinations, you should seek immediate medical attention.
Tetanus is a bacterial disease. In the United States, giving children vaccines on a regular basis is uncommon. Adults should get a tetanus booster shot every 10 years.
A dog bite that tears the skin may result in scarring. In many cases, the severity of minor scarring will fade with time.
Through medical procedures like grafting or cosmetic surgery, scarring that is severe or that appears on the face can be reduced.
Annual dog bite-related deaths in the United States are extremely rare. About 70% of dog bite-related fatalities that do occur involve children under the age of 10
You should receive a rabies vaccination if you are bitten by a dog that exhibits rabies symptoms, such as acting erratically or foaming at the mouth.
When receiving prompt medical attention, rabies, a potentially fatal condition, can be completely avoided.
Due to widespread immunization and prevention programs, rabies in humans is uncommon in the United States and is rarely spread by dogs. Getting a rabies post-exposure vaccine makes sense if you or your doctor have any concerns that you may have contracted rabies through a dog bite.
Over the course of several weeks, the vaccine is administered as a series of four injections. As part of the treatment, an additional injection of rabies immune globulin is needed.
Dog bites can introduce dangerous bacteria into the body. When left untreated, this can result in serious infections that are sometimes fatal.
After being bitten, it’s crucial to immediately wash the wound and apply topical antibiotics, like povidone iodine, to the area’s broken skin.
Keep an eye on the wound for signs of infection. After being bitten, symptoms may appear anywhere between 24 hours and 14 days later, depending on the type of infection.
Infections can spread quickly throughout the body. See your doctor right away if you experience infection symptoms. You may need oral or intravenous antibiotics.
If your doctor gives you antibiotics, you’ll likely need to take them for one to two weeks. Despite the fact that the infection may appear to be completely under control, keep taking your medication.
It’s crucial to seek medical attention as soon as you notice any infection symptoms because bacterial infections are a common side effect of dog bites.
Your best line of defense against dog bites and the complications they can cause is rabies vaccination for your own dog and avoiding dogs you don’t know. Never pet a dog you don’t know, regardless of how cute they may seem.
Additionally, refrain from fighting or playing rough with dogs, even those you are familiar with. Additionally, it makes sense to “let sleeping dogs lie” and never to bother a dog who is eating or taking care of puppies.
Doctors say misconceptions about dog bites linger, more awareness needed in the community
Updated June 02, 2016 03:29 pm IST – Chennai: September 26, 2013 02:49 am:
A dog bite used to result in 16 anti-rabies shots administered to the abdomen. Modern medicine has reduced the number of shots needed to prevent the spread of the lethal viral disease rabies to just four or five. But there are still misunderstandings about what to do if a dog bites you.
“Many people continue to follow old remedies that are ineffective. On a dog bite, some people use erukkam paal, coffee powder, mud, and cow dung. Some people believe that by tying a piece of cloth over the wound, they can stop the spread of infection. Simply wash the wound with soap under running water for 15 minutes is all that needs to be done. After that, an antiseptic solution can be used, but immediate medical attention is required,” said S Raghunanthanan, a professor of medicine at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (GH) and Madras Medical College (MMC)
Globally, 55,000 people die every year due to rabies. 60% of them are under the age of 15 years. In India, rabies causes 20,000 deaths every year.
95% of animal bite cases at GH involve dog bites. Dr. X says that the hospital sees 50 to 70 cases of animal bites per day. Raghunanthanan said.
Four to five doses of the anti-rabies vaccine are given on days 0, 3, 7, 14, and 28 following a bite in order to prevent rabies.
“We abandoned the 16-dose vaccine years ago. The only vaccine available today to prevent rabies is safe. Rabies is fatal, but 100 per cent preventable. As is frequently the case, people shouldn’t wait to see if the dog survives for 10 days. Raghunanthanan added.
The Institute of Community Medicine at MMC conducted a study with community adults and high school and college students, and discovered that among high school students, 37 3% of respondents believed that animal licks could spread rabies.
While 42. Only 15% of people were aware that rabies cannot be cured, while only 8% were aware that it was a fatal disease. In the neighborhood, 33% were aware of the method of transmission, and 47% were aware that it was a fatal illness.
If a person feeds, touches, or licks an infected dog or if the dog licks healthy skin, there is no need for treatment, according to Dr. Raghunanthanan.
“Vaccination is required if the dog bites someone or licks their mucus membranes, such as their mouth, eyes, or nose.” Immunization and immunoglobulin should be given if it bites and injures a muscle, he said. He emphasized that even if the wound healed, patients still needed to finish the course.
GH Dean V. Kanagasabai said the government has allotted Rs. 10. 5 billion this fiscal year to buy anti-rabies vaccines for State government hospitals Of this, GH gets Rs. 10 lakh.
The hospital organized a poster exhibition for World Rabies Day on Saturday near the outpatient building. The exhibition will be open between 7. 30 a. m. and 1. 30 p. m.
Prior vaccination recipients should receive two IM doses if exposed to rabies (1 0 mL each) of vaccine, one right away and the other three days later. Those who have received one of the recommended HDCV, RVA, or PCECV preexposure or postexposure regimens, or who have received another vaccine and had a documented rabies antibody titer, are considered to have received previous vaccinations. Because an anamnestic response will occur after the administration of a booster regardless of the pre-booster antibody titer, RIG is unnecessary and should not be given to these people. Page last reviewed: Content source:
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The four-dose course’s first dose needs to be given as soon as possible after exposure. On days 3, 7, and 14 following the initial vaccination, additional doses should be given. Adults should always receive the vaccination intramuscularly in the arm’s deltoid region. The anterolateral side of the thigh is also acceptable for children. Because administration of the rabies vaccine in this area appears to result in lower neutralizing antibody titers, the gluteal area should never be used for injections.
Which food should avoid after dog bite?
There is a list of restrictions that the victims adhere to, including not eating potatoes, milk, coriander, dhal, spicy foods, tomatoes, meat, etc., according to some studies conducted in India.
FAQ
How many shots do you get if a dog bites you?
The vaccine is administered over the course of several weeks as a series of four injections. As part of the treatment, an additional injection of rabies immune globulin is needed.
Do I need all 4 rabies shots?
If you have never received a rabies vaccination, you will require 4 doses over the course of 2 weeks (on days 0, 3, 7, and 14). On the day you receive the first dose of the rabies vaccine, or shortly after, you should also receive a different medication called rabies immunoglobulin.
Which injection is used for dog bite?
People who have been exposed to an animal that is known to have rabies or is suspected of having it are given the rabies vaccine. This is called post-exposure prophylaxis. People who have a high risk of contracting the rabies virus may also be given the rabies vaccine in advance.
How many injections do you need for anti rabies?
The four-dose course’s first dose needs to be given as soon as possible after exposure. On days 3, 7, and 14 following the initial vaccination, additional doses should be given. Adults should always receive the vaccination intramuscularly in the arm’s deltoid region.