A Utah man who became infected with rabies after handling several bats potentially exposed 279 other people, most of them health workers.

The case was first reported to the Utah Department of Health on November 3, 2018, but the 55-year-old man’s symptoms had begun 18 days earlier. The man initially sought chiropractic care for arm and neck pain he attributed to a previous injury. Two days later he went to the emergency department with ongoing pain, a burning sensation in his arm, and numbness in his hand. He had no fever or chills but reported being unable to drink. He received a prescription steroid and was discharged.

Two days later he returned to the hospital with breathing difficulties and lightheadedness. After being transferred to 2 more hospitals with worsening symptoms, he developed a high fever and became comatose. The man received steroids for presumed autoimmune encephalitis. He was then transferred to a fourth hospital after developing seizures. An infectious disease specialist there noted the man’s muscle spasms while swallowing could indicate rabies.

犹他州一名男子在处理数只蝙蝠后被感染狂犬病，可能会使其他279人暴露，其中大多数是卫生工作者。

该病例于2018年11月3日首次报告给犹他州卫生署，但55岁男子的症状已在18天前开始出现。该男子最初是由于先前的受伤而对手臂和颈部疼痛寻求脊椎治疗。两天后，他因持续疼痛，手臂灼热感和手麻木去急诊室。他没有发烧或发冷，但据报告无法喝酒。他接受了类固醇处方药并出院。

两天后，他因呼吸困难和头昏眼花回到医院。在被转移到另外两家症状恶化的医院后，他发高烧并昏迷了。该男子因推测为自身免疫性脑炎而接受类固醇激素治疗。癫痫发作后，他被转移到第四家医院。那里的一名传染病专家指出，该人的肌肉痉挛，而吞咽可能表明狂犬病。