Rabies in humans typically starts with nonspecific early symptoms and can progress to more severe neurological signs. If exposure is suspected, seek urgent medical care. Direct answer:
- Early (prodromal) symptoms: fever, headache, general malaise, tiredness or weakness, nausea or vomiting, loss of appetite, and numbness or tingling at the bite area. Some people may also have anxiety, irritability, or a sense of unease at this stage.
- Neurologic/advanced symptoms: confusion, agitation, hallucinations, hyperactivity, delirium, hydrophobia (fear of water) or aerophobia (fear of air drafts), excessive drooling or foaming at the mouth, muscle spasms (especially in the throat), trouble swallowing, partial or complete paralysis, and eventually coma. Death commonly occurs within days to weeks after symptoms begin if untreated.
- Incubation period: typically 2–3 months, but it can be as short as a week or as long as over a year, depending on factors like bite location and viral load. The onset of symptoms marks the progression to a potentially fatal illness.
Important context:
- Hydrophobia (fear of water) is a classic but not universal feature and is more associated with the furious form of rabies. Another form, paralytic rabies, may present with weakness and paralysis and fewer dramatic neurologic signs.
- Rabies is almost always fatal once clinical symptoms appear, but prompt post-exposure prophylaxis (PPV) after exposure can prevent disease if started before symptoms begin. Seek immediate medical evaluation after any potential exposure (bite, scratch, or saliva contacting broken skin or mucous membranes).
If you have had a recent animal bite or exposure, contact a healthcare professional or local public health authority right away for evaluation and potential treatment.
