Rabies surveillance activities
Rabies is endemic in Cameroon, and dogs are the primary vector of human rabies transmission. Only one sample from a suspected human rabies patient was received at the CPC in 2023 and tested negative following confirmatory testing. No biological analysis was performed on animal samples suspected of being rabid.
Animal rabies
In 2017, 6 heads of dogs suspected of being rabid were analyzed: 3 from the South region (Ambam, Ebolowa and Mvangan), 2 from the Center (Mvog-Beti and Emana districts in Yaoundé) and 1 from the West (Dschang). Rabid status was confirmed in 3 of the 6 dogs tested (2 from the Center region and 1 from the South region (Ambam)).
Human Rage
Regarding human rabies, no samples (saliva and/or skin biopsies) from suspected cases were received at the Pasteur Centre in Cameroon in 2017. The absence of samples from suspected cases of human rabies is linked to the non-transmission of these samples to the laboratory, as 9 clinically detected suspected cases were notified by the surveillance system in 2017, which demonstrates the absence of an effective surveillance system. These current fragmented data do not allow us to estimate the real burden of rabies on human and animal health in Cameroon.
Results of rabies antibody titration analyses
Given the current low demand, the CPC subcontracts with the departmental veterinary laboratory of Haute Garonne (Launaguet, France) the analyses of anti-rabies antibody titration of domestic animals before their export. In 2017, the virology department received and sent 3 sera for anti-rabies antibody titration.
