A cat bit me in the hand. How long can I wait before I take a rabies shot?How long is it before its too late?
Question:
Answers:
The key issue is whether the bite was high or low risk. If the cat was a pet, is not ill, has had rabies shots, or if the bite was provoked (you were playing with it) then your risk is low and you do not need PEP. If the cat was in Nepal, came down the street drooling and had a seizure at the sight of water before it bit you, then you should have had PEP as soon as possible. In addition, in the latter scenario, you should also get Rabies immune globulin into the wound and around it and IM right away.
If the cat bite broke the skin (any bleeding) you should also be taking amoxicillin/clavulanate for other cat-mouth cooties.
Bottom line: if you need the shots, get them right away as they dont work very well in the first place. If it was really high risk get RIG too as it can save your life. If it was low risk, stop bothering those animals and forget about it, but take your Augmentin.
Other Answers:
I wouldnt take any chances. Go NOW!
Get a shot ASAP. if the cat is vaccinated or not its better to be on the safer side to get it.
Source(s):
Personal experience
If you die, it's too late.
If you're not sure if the animal has had its shots, contact the owner if possible and ask. If you can't reach the owner, get anti-rabies shots ASAP. If left untreated rabies is fatal.
too late already
the cat needs to be quarantined. Talk to your local animal shelter. Because they will quarantine the animal for 10 days. if the cat is OK after 10 days then you wont need shots. If you cant find or identify the cat call your doctor immediately
catch the cat get it tested cause ive heard that rabie shots arent to pleasent after effects and all
I take it you live anywhere but Britain?
Get to a doctor today & don't take risks.
Was it a stray cat or a family pet? Its probably ok if its a family pet, but if you are talking Puma or Lynx well. i'd get to ER!
Good Luck dude.
Grrrrrrrrrrrowwwwlllll >:)
GO NOW
It could have been radioactive, if so you should soon start to experience cat like reflexes and agility, feel the need to lick your own butt and play with a ball of string!
Source(s):
Spiderman
I do hope you've rinsed your hand under cool water for a while then applied an antiseptic gel. Do not wait for any longer, get to the hospital and have this seen to!
You'll be ok, but next time bite the cat first.
a cat?!?
what we're you doing to it for it to bite you?
was it like a household cat?
personally I wouldn't worry. I think you've been a little mis-informed.
It is not the rabies that I would be concerned about right now, it is INFECTION. Cat bites are basically puncture wounds (where dog bites are tears) and the cats' teeth innoculate your hand with all kinds of nasty bacteria. Typically these wounds can not be irrigated, they must be opened and drained by a hand specialist (if the become infected). You need to be seen by the doctor to be placed on Augmentin(R) and have your hand splinted to prevent tracking of the bacteria farther up from the initial bite. Good Luck
Source(s):
er doc
the bite needs to be documented legally.call the local police then go to the ER..cat bites can be nasty because of the bacteria they have in their mouths..you need to have the wound irrigated if possible and put on antibiotics possibly..and if you need to take the rabies shots it needs to start the same day.they are aseries of shots..day zero,3,7,10 etc..I cant remember the exact days but I do know it starts right away.the cat needs to be quarantined after its caught by animal control..if it has an owner they may allow it to live for 10 days and if its a stray or feral then it will probably be tested right away for rabies..so first thing you need to do is call law enforcement have it documented then go to the ER.the infection you can get is very nasty and painful
Source(s):
medical provider and past recipient of a feral cat bite treated for infection that required surgical intervention 18 hours post bite.was a vet tech when this occurred
Go to ER and get it checked. You should try and catch the cat and keep it in a cage (feed it and water it until animal control can take it). Sometimes they will test the cat and you won't have to get the shots or you can find out when his last rabies shot was.
The worst thing about cat bites is that they infect really easily and can end up in cellulitis. For some reason their bites are way worse than a dog bite. Defo go to ER.
if the cats drinking water its not rabid, and your Tetanus shot will suffice.
IF YOU HAVE CAUGHT RABIES, IT IS TOO LATE.
(read THE RABIES VIRUS below)
you did not say if the cat puntured you skin..
you should go to A+E as soon as possible.
i have scars and teeth marks left over from a wildcat attack a few years back..
if you had a tetanus shot 2 months ago, the hospital might not give you another one, but they will check for rabies ( which is unlikely as the last 8 cases involved bats)
in case you DID catch rabies, read this..
THE RABIES VIRUS..
The virus is usually present in the saliva of a symptomatic rabid animal; the route of infection is nearly always by a bite. By causing the infected animal to be exceptionally aggressive, the virus ensures its transmission to the next host. Transmission has occurred via an aerosol through mucous membranes; transmission in this form may have happened in people exploring caves populated by rabid bats. Transmission from person to person is extremely rare, though it can happen through transplant surgery, or even more rarely through bites or kisses.
After a typical human infection by animal bite, the virus directly or indirectly enters the peripheral nervous system. It then travels along the nerves towards the central nervous system. During this phase, the virus cannot be easily detected within the host, and vaccination may still confer cell-mediated immunity to pre-empt symptomatic rabies. Once the virus reaches the brain, it rapidly causes encephalitis and symptoms appear. It may also inflame the spinal cord producing myelitis.
The period between infection and the first flu-like symptoms is normally 3–12 weeks, but can be as long as two years. Soon after, the symptoms expand to cerebral dysfunction, anxiety, insomnia, confusion, agitation, abnormal behaviour, hallucinations, progressing to delirium. The production of large quantities of saliva and tears coupled with an inability to speak or swallow are typical during the later stages of the disease; this can result in "hydrophobia". Death almost invariably results 2–10 days after the first symptoms; the handful of people who are known to have survived the disease were all left with severe brain damage.
GOOD LUCK!
I think you are probably a hypochondriac. Give the poor cat a chance, it is she /he who should be asking if she has caught something!
Get the shot, its never too late to at least try. There is actually a case where a girl supposedly survived Rabies. So there is always the chance!
yep
I would be more worried about getting Bartonella from a cat bite than rabies.
i would get tested right away..you never know. if that cat isnt vaccinated, it shouldnt still be loose if its biting people. it should be put down.
Ok, first of all rabies is technically not a human disease. In fact, there were zero human cases reported by the CDC last year. Of cases that have been reported few remember being bitten by an animal. There is a rabies vaccine but it is there to ease the minds of worried mothers. Your chances of getting rabies is slim to none.
Source(s):
I'm a pharmacy student.
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