Rabies in Vietnam

Vietnam, similarly to many other countries in Asia, has low dog vaccination coverage, poor animal control programs, and high post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) usage. In the last decade, Vietnam reported a total of 914 human deaths, averaging about 91 deaths each year, a relatively low rate on the Asian continent. However, more than 407,000 courses of PEP are administered annually, causing a major economic burden. To put it in perspective, it costs about $1.32 USD to vaccinate a dog, while the cost of one course of PEP is $153 USD – almost 116 times more. Studies show that vaccinating 7 out of 10 dogs in the dog population can sufficiently protect the people in the community. In partnership with several countries in the region, the Vietnamese government has committed to achieving the ambitious goal to eliminate canine rabies by 2020.

The CDC Rabies team works to support Vietnam in its effort by improving rabies surveillance and laboratory testing capabilities in northern Vietnam, developing training materials for event-based surveillance of 10 priority diseases, including rabies, and working with national and international partners to develop step-wise approaches for canine rabies elimination.