An 11-year-old boy in Ontario, Canada, has died from a rabies infection after coming into direct contact with a bat.

加拿大安大略省一名 11 歲男孩在與蝙蝠直接接觸後，因感染狂犬病而死亡。

The illness began nineteen days after the boy encountered a bat while sleeping at a cottage in northern Ontario in 2024. Although there were no visible wounds and the animal did not act strangely, the virus was still transmitted. At first, doctors misdiagnosed the patient with Bell's palsy and a mouth infection because he had facial numbness and swelling. However, his condition worsened quickly, leading to confusion and hallucinations. He was eventually moved to a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, where laboratory tests confirmed he had a version of rabies found in bats.

這名男孩於 2024 年在安大略省北部的一座小屋睡覺時遇到一隻蝙蝠，病症在 19 天後開始顯現。儘管當時沒有明顯傷口且動物行為正常，病毒仍發生了傳播。起初，由於患者出現面部麻痺與腫脹，醫生將其誤診為貝爾面癱及口腔感染。然而，他的病情迅速惡化，導致意識混亂並出現幻覺。他最終被轉至兒童加護病房，實驗室檢測證實他感染了蝙蝠身上的一種狂犬病病毒。

This is the first case of locally acquired human rabies in Ontario since 1967. While vaccines for pets have reduced the risk from dogs, bats remain the main source of rabies in North America. Medical experts emphasize that bat teeth are so small that bite marks are often impossible to see. Consequently, doctors recommend post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP)—which includes a vaccine and immune globulin—for anyone who has direct contact with a bat. Because rabies is almost always fatal once symptoms appear, life-support was withdrawn on the seventeenth day of the patient's hospital stay.

這是安大略省自 1967 年以來首例本地感染的人類狂犬病個案。雖然寵物疫苗降低了由狗傳染的風險，但蝙蝠仍是北美洲狂犬病的主要來源。醫學專家強調，蝙蝠的牙齒極小，咬傷痕跡通常無法被看見。因此，醫生建議任何與蝙蝠有直接接觸的人都應採取暴露後預防措施 (PEP) —— 包括接種疫苗和免疫球蛋白。由於狂犬病在症狀出現後幾乎必然致命，患者在住院第 17 天撤除了生命維持系統。

The patient passed away after showing clinical symptoms, which highlights the importance of getting immediate medical treatment regardless of whether an injury is visible.

患者在出現臨床症狀後去世，這凸顯了無論是否能看見傷口，立即接受醫療處理都至關重要。