Clinical alert for rabies on Timor

Clinical considerations:

• Rabies is fatal without post-exposure treatment.
• Consider rabies PEP for animal bites or scratches, particularly dog bites, in these regions.
• Precautions including pre-exposure prophylaxis (PreP) and post exposure prophylaxis (PEP) should be considered for people who work in or travel to West Timor (Indonesia) or Timor-Leste.
• Following an urgent risk assessment, determine the need for commencement or continuation of PEP for bites in returning travellers from a wild or domestic terrestrial mammal in a rabies-enzootic country.
• PEP should be considered regardless of the time interval since potential exposure.
• Some people who travel to rabies-enzootic areas are recommended to receive rabies vaccine as PreP.

For further information, read the full clinical alert.