Notes from the Field: Enhanced Surveillance for Raccoon Rabies Virus Variant and Vaccination of Wildlife for Management - Omaha, Nebraska, October 2023-July 2024

• Published in: MMWR. Morbidity and mortality weekly report 2024-10, Vol.73 (41), p.933-935
• Main Authors: Stein, Sydney R, Beron, Andrew J, Nelson, Kathleen M, Price, Emma, Rodriguez, Sergio E, Shelus, Victoria, Carpenter, Ann, Hess, Amy R, Boutelle, Cassandra, Morgan, Clint N, Gigante, Crystal M, Hutson, Christina L, Loy, John D, Loy, Duan S, Wetzel, Chad, Frederick, Justin, Huse, Lindsay, Orciari, Lillian, Chipman, Richard B, Wallace, Ryan M, Donahue, Matthew, Buss, Bryan F
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agriculture; Animals; Animals, Wild; Bats; Cats; Disease; Domestic animals; Health inspections; Human motion; Humans; Immunization; Investigations; Lyssavirus; Nebraska - epidemiology; Notes from the Field; Population Surveillance; Post-Exposure Prophylaxis; Public health; Rabies; Rabies - epidemiology; Rabies - prevention & control; Rabies - veterinary; Rabies Vaccines - administration & dosage; Rabies virus - immunology; Rabies virus - isolation & purification; Raccoons; Social networks; Surveillance; Translocation; Typing; Vaccination; Vaccination - statistics & numerical data; Vaccination - veterinary; Vaccines; Viruses; Wildlife
• ISSN: 0149-2195; 1545-861X; 1545-861X
• DOI: 10.15585/mmwr.mm7341a4

On September 28, 2023, a kitten aged approximately 6 weeks found in Omaha, Nebraska, had test results positive for rabies at the Nebraska Veterinary Diagnostic Center (NVDC) after dying with neurologic signs and having bitten and scratched its caretakers. Preliminary investigation identified 10 exposed persons for whom postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) was recommended. Subsequent variant-typing by NVDC yielded a presumptive positive result for the Eastern raccoon rabies virus variant (RRVV), which CDC confirmed on October 6.