Mother and daughter attacked by bat

Two women given rabies vaccinations in the ER after stray bat accidentally scratches them

By JUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH
Bat attacks woman 370 (photo credit: Courtesy Kaplan Medical Center)
Bat attacks woman 370
(photo credit: Courtesy Kaplan Medical Center)
A woman and her 15-year-old daughter who were sleeping in the same room in their Rehovot home woke up to discover that both had been scratched by a stray bat who entered through the window and, in its confusion, caused them harm while trying to escape.
Both were taken to the city’s Kaplan Medical Center, treated and given passive and active vaccinations against rabies.
The mother and daughter both found the same kind of scratches, some of them deep, on the left side of their necks.
They told doctors that they both woke up from the wounds. The vaccine was injected near the wound and in a muscle. The case was reported to the Health Ministry as required.
“We didn’t really see the bat because it was total darkness in the room, but we woke up a second after we were both scratched,” the mother said.
“Apparently, the bat came through the first-floor window in our two-story home, flew to the upper floor and looked for a way to get out. On his way out the bedroom window, he apparently scratched us with his claws.”
Dr. Baruch Gonen, head of the pediatric emergency room, said the scratches certainly could be from a stray bat.
“When they came to the hospital, we cleaned the wounds thoroughly. In a few days, they both will receive four additional shots to prevent rabies.”
The physician said that in any case in which a person is bitten or scratched by a mammal, they should go immediately to a hospital emergency room.