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TheGnarWall t1_iudiob1 wrote

You're supposed to get a titer every couple years to check your levels of protection and if those levels drop you would require a booster. I have friends that work with bats and other wildlife and haven't heard of them needing boosters over many years but I'm sure it happens.

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Alwayssunnyinarizona t1_iudlfhk wrote

Typically every 2yrs for titers.

The only problem? No one knows what titers specifically are protective; the "less than" level requiring a booster is somewhat arbitrary.

For obvious reasons, the experiments necessary to determine the appropriate level - exposing people with varying antibody titers to rabies - have never been done :)

Source - I've gone through full post-exposure prophylaxis. There's no concern for developing rabies further down the road and boosters are only necessary for those who continue to be at high risk for exposure.

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chronicallylaconic t1_iudrd7m wrote

May I ask whether PEP is as painful as I've heard? If it's not a goddamn horror story it'll be unlike everything else associated with rabies.

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Squester t1_iuexpnx wrote

You're probably thinking the big needle in the stomach but they don't need that anymore. The vaccine itself is just a series of 4 normal shots for post exposure, but the painful part is the immunoglobulin because it's very thick so it needs a big needle at the site of exposure. In my case, my forehead

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Sir-Simon-Spamalot t1_iugqmub wrote

How did you get bitten in the forehead, if I may ask?

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Squester t1_iugqtcf wrote

I very rudely ripped a poor little bat's house off the wall of our garage while he was sleeping (did not know it was his house). He was understandably very upset and my face was right there! Since it was outside we couldn't catch it to test it for rabies so I got to get the vaccine

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[deleted] t1_iudvyf5 wrote

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TheLurkingMenace t1_iudxfhf wrote

I always thought the "big needle right in your stomach" was just what they told kids so they wouldn't play with wild animals. Never would have guessed there was some truth behind it.

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tonniecat t1_iuee8ro wrote

A bat bit me in a couple fingertips - the bites didnt hurt, but the needles in the fingertips was pretty painful.

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Insight42 t1_iug0df3 wrote

It's not.

I hate needles. I've passed out from vaccinations before, even if they're not painful - I even had to sit for a half hour after a flu shot once.

Rabies PEP consists of 4 visits. The first is 4 shots of vaccine in the arm and immunoglobulin injected as close to the wound as they can get. The 4 vaccine doses were almost entirely painless - the immunoglobulin is not. It's thick and you get a lot of it.

The other three visits - at day 3, day 7, and day 14, if memory serves - are each just one injection of a dose of vaccine, and aren't any more painful than a flu shot. Generally you're a bit wiped for the rest of the day, but nothing terrible and no soreness the next day.

Unfortunately, the only place they have this is the ER. That can mean a long wait and some nasty bills. Better than rabies though.

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xallanthia t1_iugj3uw wrote

Anyone else going through this—you can get doses 3, 7, and 14 through urgent care to save some on the bill. I just had to do the series myself.

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[deleted] t1_iufvhri wrote

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Emu1981 t1_iugxfg7 wrote

>the COVID vaccine was a 5

I found that the COVID vaccine highly depended on who actually gave you the injection. I had Pfizer for my first two doses and Moderna for my two boosters. My first dose of Pfizer was barely noticeable other than the mild fever and ache of my arm afterwards. My second dose, which was done by a different nurse but same vaccine at the same centre, was painful AF but the fever and arm ache was way more mild. Third and fourth were done at my local chemist and neither really did much of anything regarding pain or aching beyond a really mild arm arche (barely noticeable) and a very mild fever - I literally feel hotter now due to the combination of heat from my computer (just played around 45 minutes of BF2042) and the high humidity.

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BigNorseWolf t1_iugggmp wrote

The pre exposure was just a regular shot. No side effects for me (got it in africa for the peace corps. But they wouldn't give me a dog tag...)

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brucebay t1_iugpgwf wrote

I never heard pre-exposure for rabbies. If you have it, will it protect you like a regular vaccine, or do you still need additional shots if you are bitten?

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BigNorseWolf t1_iugrphf wrote

Its just like for dogs, but for people.

If you get bitten while vaccinated you get two shots.

If you get bitten and not its 4.

I don't think we know how often those two extra shots are NECESSARY but we do not want to find out.

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4077007 t1_iugpe35 wrote

I’ve given it in the ER a handful of times, and it’s easily one of the cruelest things I have ever done to another human. Definitely better than rabies, but not better than much else… People don’t tend to get bitten in large, low innervation areas. It tends to be in the sensitive, low-fat, low muscle areas which makes the injections so so painful. I’ve given them in a shin, palm of the hand, and thumb.

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Kraz_I t1_iuipics wrote

Can you at least numb the area with local anesthetic first?

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4077007 t1_iuj3zsc wrote

Lidocaine is very painful going in at first. It’s great for longer procedures, but you’re just about as good bearing through the rabies shots as you would be getting the lidocaine shots and then having to get stabbed more times in areas that may or may not have gotten sufficient lidocaine to numb you completely.

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