This is a first in mainland France. A man died of rabies in Limoges , presumably after being bitten or scratched by a bat , did we learn on Wednesday from the Pasteur Institute . The 60-year-old had succumbed to a encephalitis , an inflammation of the brain, of unexplained origin, in August 2009. A partnership established between
the Necker Hospital and the Institut Pasteur, aimed at identifying the causes of undocumented encephalitis, led to the genetic analysis of post-mortem samples. These analyzes at Necker hospital in Paris showed that he had contracted a lyssavirus, European Bat LyssaVirus type 1 (EBLV-1), sheltered by bats.
” This shows that there are cases of rabies that can be missed ”
“It is thanks to this retrospective diagnosis that this case was brought to light. This shows that there are cases of rabies that can be missed, ”explained Laurent Dacheux, deputy head of the national reference center for rabies at the Institut Pasteur.
“The trace of this virus was identified at that time, in November 2019. In the midst of coronavirus , and this discovery went unnoticed, ”continues Laurent Dacheux. This exceptional case was finally mentioned in a popular science article on the site mesvaccins.net and highlighted by the regional daily
“It is thanks to this retrospective diagnosis that this case was brought to light. This shows that there are cases of rabies that can be missed, ”explained Laurent Dacheux, deputy head of the national reference center for rabies at the Institut Pasteur.
“The trace of this virus was identified at that time, in November 2019. In the midst of coronavirus , and this discovery went unnoticed, ”continues Laurent Dacheux. This exceptional case was finally mentioned in a popular science article on the site mesvaccins.net and highlighted by the regional daily
The People of the Center .
In contact with bats that nested in his attic
Concerning the European bat, “that makes 20 years after a death of this type had not arrived in the world. And in mainland France, this is indeed a first ”, assures Laurent Dacheux. “We had an identical death in 310 in Russia. Two other deaths involving chiropterologists in which another species of bat lyssavirus is involved, EBLV-2, were listed in 1985 in Finland and another in Scotland in 2001 ”, He added, considering that“ the patient who died in Limoges has apparently been in contact with bats which nested in his attic ”. In France, rabies has been officially eradicated since 1998, emphasizes the researcher. “The last case listed in France and concerning non-flying animals dates back to 1985 ”.