Postcard from Bishkek

I’ve said it before, (several times), and will probably say it again, (several times): “Every day is a special day … for someone.”

For example, A couple of weeks ago, on September 15th, I happened to call in on the Honorary British Consul, (I have to apply for a new passport and needed a signature on the back of the photograph that it really was me … I am not very photogenic but I thought it was a particularly good likeness, not like most passport photographs), and I happened to mention that it was Battle of Britain Day. He almost dropped his pen as he asked me “Where do get all this trivia from?”

Well, I suppose there are several answers to that … but the “Every day is a special day” trivia basically came from a school project I ran back when I was teacher. We covered the back wall of the classroom with a calendar and had to see if we could find something for every day of the year. Some were easy – so-and-so’s birthday … and so on, then there were holidays, like Christmas … and then the kids had to go searching. Every time we got a new suggestion then the child that nominated it had to explain why it was a “special day” – so it served a good educational purpose … they had to do their research, then had to make a presentation to explain it to their peers.

Well, I think that today would have been an interesting one for the Calendar: World Rabies Day.

The date, 28th September, was chosen as it happens to the anniversary of the death of Luis Pasteur who developed the first efficacious rabies vaccine, (together with some colleagues).   Events to commemorate the day, (raising awareness about the impact of rabies on humans and animals, providing information and advice on how to prevent the disease and how individuals and organizations can help eliminate it),  are coordinated by  the Global Alliance for Rabies Control, which is backed by the World Heath Organization, the World Veterinary Association and other organizations.

The first such day was held in only 2007, but within a few years it was being marked in over 120 countries around the world.

Back in the UK we are, fortunately, free of Rabies, but everyone knows about it … Mad Dogs and Englishmen, and all that stuff.  As soon as you cross the Channel, however, and enter Europe, Brits run the risk of encountering Rabies.  I remember being in France on a school trip and a dog in a cafe just outside Paris nipped me.  It wasn’t serious and I wasn’t hurt, but I was scratched … there was a bit of blood.    I spent an uncomfortable night thinking “They have Rabies in France.”  When I got back home I went to see the Doctor.  He was quite off-hand about it.  Yes, it was a possibility, but extremely unlikely.

On the other hand, there is rabies in Kyrgyzstan, mainly in the mountain areas.  Occasionally there are stories in the press about someone becoming ill with Rabies.  I don’t have up to date statistics, but in 2003 there were about 50 cases of rabid animals, mostly dogs, reported in the republic, and in 2004 a number of people died from Rabies following dog bites.

Although I have never heard of a tourist contacting this disease, we do know of one case, some years ago, where a tourist, (not one of our clients), was bitten by a dog and had to undergo a course of inoculations.  Most hospitals here actually carry stocks of vaccine.

Anyway, as a result, we are sometimes asked by tourists planning to come to Kyrgyzstan about Rabies in the country and this is, basically, what we tell them:

For the record:  Rabies is an acute viral infection of the nervous system. Once symptoms develop in humans the disease is usually fatal however, if someone is bitten, then it is possible to get “post-exposure” treatment which – if given early enough – usually prevents the disease developing. Symptoms include delirium and painful muscle spasms in the throat.

• Avoid contact with animals: wild, stray or apparently tame.  In any case, do not allow an animal to lick you. 
• Cover all breaks in your skin (cuts, grazes, abrasions) with a sticky plaster or dressing.
• If you are bitten:
  • Wash the wound immediately using soap, (or detergent) and rinse with clean water;
  • Disinfect the wound, for example with alcohol or some other strong disinfectant;
  • Consult a doctor – or hospital.  Explain that you have been bitten by animal that might be rabid.
  • Make a note of the details of the incident – time, place, a description of the animal – including if it was wild, stray or domestic.
  • Inform the local police
  • Inform the nearest consul or embassy
  • Consult your doctor immediately on your return home.
• Ensure that your insurance policy covers emergency repatriation under these circumstances;