Establishment of a Canine Rabies Burden in Haiti through the Implementation of a Novel Surveillance Program

Abstract

The Republic of Haiti is one of only several countries in the Western Hemisphere in which canine rabies is still endemic. Estimation methods have predicted that 130 human deaths occur per year, yet existing surveillance mechanisms have detected few of these rabies cases. Likewise, canine rabies surveillance capacity has had only limited capacity, detecting only two rabid dogs per year, on average. In 2013, Haiti initiated a community-based animal rabies surveillance program comprised of two components: active community bite investigation and passive animal rabies investigation. From January 2013 –December 2014, 778 rabies suspect animals were reported for investigation. Rabies was laboratory-confirmed in 70 animals (9%) and an additional 36 cases were identified based on clinical diagnosis (5%), representing an 18-fold increase in reporting of rabid animals compared to the three years before the program was implemented. Dogs were the most frequent rabid animal (90%). Testing and observation ruled out rabies in 61% of animals investigated. A total of 639 bite victims were reported to the program and an additional 364 bite victims who had not sought medical care were identified during the course of investigations. Only 31% of people with likely rabies exposures had initiated rabies post-exposure prophylaxis prior to the investigation. Rabies is a neglected disease in-part due to a lack of surveillance and understanding about the burden. The surveillance methods employed by this program established a much higher burden of canine rabies in Haiti than previously recognized. The active, community-based bite investigations identified numerous additional rabies exposures and bite victims were referred for appropriate medical care, averting potential human rabies deaths. The use of community-based rabies surveillance programs such as HARSP should be considered in canine rabies endemic countries. Author Summary: The Republic of Haiti has highest estimated burden of human rabies in the Western Hemisphere, at 130 estimated human deaths annually. Rabies surveillance systems in the majority of the developing world, including Haiti, are ineffective, resulting in underreporting of cases and contributing to the further neglect of this disease. In 2013 a passive rabies surveillance program was implemented in three of Haiti’s 140 communes near the nation’s capital city. Four animal rabies surveillance officers conducted 778 suspect animal rabies investigations in a two-year period and on average found a rabid animal for every 7.4 investigations. Prior to the implementation of this surveillance program Haiti reported an average of two canine and seven human rabies cases each year, for the entire country. This program identified 70 rabid animals and an additional 36 probable rabid animals in only a selected area of the country. These 106 cases represent an 18-fold increase in animal rabies reporting in Haiti. These findings support that canine rabies is a significant burden in Haiti and present data that can be used to improve human rabies burden estimations and enhance canine rabies control efforts.

Publication information

Originally published in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases on 2015-11-24. Original DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0004245.

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