Bat flew into my hair, AIBU to seek further advice?

[SameOldMe]

Sitting in the garden and i bet flew into my head, no obvious marks or bites but terrified me ! Called 111 and they said as no scratches or bites just wait and see. It flew into my hair and in the panic i have no idea if it made contact or not. AIBU to call back and ask for a second opinion? Appreciate this if the second bat post in the last few days.

111 are wrong. Arm yourself with the info from the link PP posted and call them back.

You need to have the post exposure rabies vaccine course.

Bat bites and scratches can cause rabies even in the UK. There is no treatment once symptoms start, and bat bites and scratches are often painless and don't leave a mark.

You need the vaccines if there is even a slight chance of having been bitten or scratched. There is no benefit to 'wait and see', only very serious risk.

Call 111. They will advise

I’m usually pretty laissez-faire about stuff like this but not rabies. You don’t fuck with that. Even if there’s a teensy weensy itty bitty chance I am not gambling on it.

It’s fucking RABIES!!

Defintely present at A&E and get the vaccine. You can’t be certain it didn’t break the skin.

The girl in the US who survived by being put in the coma didn’t think the bat had bitten her either.

I’ve got curly hair it got stuck and I went into a blind panic not knowing what is was and worried it was bat couldn’t believe it when a bat flew off. Called 111 and they said if I have symptoms call back but it’s too late by then.

It’s ok. Don’t panic. Go to bed and go to a&e in the morning with the leaflet the person above has kindly linked.

What the hell?!

Call them back and speak to an actual competent adult, or just go straight to A&E. Yes, potential rabies exposure is an emergency before someone tells me your arm isn't hanging off.

And put in a complaint about the absolute melon you spoke to, that's appalling.

As much as I think it is very unlikely, I wasn’t aware of the updates guidance ( thanks to who ever posted the leaflet).

Guidance I have just read recommends washing the area with soap and water( followed by the vaccine). I would at least have a thorough shower while deciding on next steps.

DO NOT waste A&Es time.

I had a shower immediately and scrubbed my head and cant feel any scratches or bites but decided to google which directed me to 111. Can it wait till the morning or a&e?

There is no wait and see with bat bites. 50% of people bitten had no idea they were. You need urgent vaccination +/- immunoglobulin.

It travels millimetres per day towards the central nervous system. It is almost universally fatal once it reaches the CNS (probably >99.9% fatal once someone develops any symptoms) and if you were bitten on your head, you would have a much shorter time before developing symptoms than someone e.g. bitten on their foot, due to a bite's proximity to the central nervous system.

What 111 has told you is dangerous and negligent. Get help immediately and don't stop pushing for support until your are vaccinated/receive immunoglobulin.

https://www.bats.org.uk/about-bats/bats-and-disease/bats-and-disease-in-the-uk/bats-and-rabies please check your facts before you shout at people.

Ideally within 24 hours post exposure.

Good.

Do you have an out of hours A&E type thing you could go to and ask? Clearly the person on 111 hasn’t a clue.

Again, it’s online info but that suggests you have 24 hours grace to get the vaccine.

You'll be fine!

She’s gonna waste a hell of a lot more NHS resources if she contracts bloody rabies isn’t she?!

The NHS protocol is to call 111 who will arrange a vaccine. As they've completely dropped the ball I would call back, now, and be very clear that you meet the criteria for needing the vaccine.

If they're still not helpful, honestly, I would go to A&E tonight because waiting is not going to help anything and might be very bad indeed.

Bats in the UK can carry rabies and it’s not always possible to know if you’ve been bitten. The risk is low but it isn’t zero. You need the treatment. Call 111 back and if they aren’t on it then go to A&E.

I'd phone your GP first thing and say it's an emergency, given its on your head potentially, not A&E Tonight

Wait and see is the worst advice I've ever heard

Looking it up there is a tiny risk of rabies

I’d get a jab, I mean you’ll probably be fine but the outcome is severe enough even if very tiny risk

This. Good grief, so much batshit crazy advice on this thread.

Hi OP,

Don't listen to all the PPs on this thread spreading misinformation, and they are wrong for belittling you and your experience. I think they're pretty nasty to do that actually.

As the advice is to wash the area first, I would do that straight away and give your hair a good shampoo (leave in conditioner if you have it to save on time). Then unquestionably, just get down to A&E so they can give you the antidote shot. As someone wise above said, you can't risk it where there's even a slight chance of rabies.

I don't know if this'll make you feel any better, but in around 2008 my friend and I were waking through an archway into Red Square in Moscow (we were third year Russian students, doing a year abroad) and she got bitten by a monkey dressed as a baby (one of those stupid spectacles for tourists to make money, they do the same with bears too). We went straight to hospital, she had the jab (I think more like two, the second one was a day later) avd she was then absolutely fine. Still around today. I'm sure you'll be grand too, just seek the medical intervention as soon as.

Edited (rabies, not rabbits!)

Absolutely seek further advice from GP. You have had direct contact with a bat and there could be a scratch or bite — bats in the UK have very tiny teeth, and so it may not be seen or felt. Although the risk of lyssavirus (a type of rabies European bats can have) transmission is incredibly low in the UK, there is NHS protocol for this. You should be offered the 4 injections (day 0, 3, 7 and 21).

Cannot believe 111 told you to watch and wait — WTF!

This. I wish people would refrain from commenting if they don't know the correct information, and don't know how to assess risk. The likelihood of the bat having lyssavirus and having bitten or scratches her are very low, but the consequences would be catastrophic. My boyfriend had a bat fly into his bedroom while he was in there (awake, so he knew it hadn't bitten or scratched him whole he slept). It flew round and round the room for ages, getting close to him at times, every so often went to hide in the curtains, and it seemed unable to find its way out even when left alone in the room in the dark. He managed to get it out eventually, and phoned his GP, who absolutely took it seriously and did not mock him like some posters are doing to the OP. The GP passed his details on to experts (possibly RIGS?) who called him back, asked a lot of questions so they could risk assess and advised that rabies vaccination wasn't necessary in his case. As the bat flew into her hair/head so was in contact I'd absolutely suggest the OP contacts health professionals and speaks to experts. They may well say no rabies shots needed but I'd rather get experts to assess end risk and advise when it comes to rabies, and if they recommend the vaccine there is no harm in getting it.