Epidemiology of animal bite in Aq Qala city, northen of Iran

BACKGROUND: Animal bite is one of the problems of public health which has the potential risk of rabies disease. This study was conducted to determine the epidemiology of animal bite in Aq Qala city from 2000 to 2009. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 13142 cases of animal bites which were recorded in Rabies Treatment Center of Aq Qala City were entered into the study by census method. The data were collected from the registered office profile of people who had referred to this center. The obtained data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequency distribution, percentage, mean, and standard deviation) and Chi-square test. FINDINGS: Of 13142 registered cases, 72.1% were men and 27.9% were women. The mean age of the victims was 25.0 ± 17.8 years, most of whom (84%) lived in villages. Also, most cases of animal bite were done by dogs, (97.8%) occurred in legs (69.6%). Most of the victims were students (28.9%). The highest frequency of bites happened in spring (28.8%). The incidence rate of animal bite was 1222/100,000 people. The highest and lowest incidence rates were 1608/100 000 in 2004 and 1117/100,000 in 2009, respectively. There was a significant relationship between season and the number of bites (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The incidence of animal bite in Aq Qala city was higher than that in other studies in different parts of the country. Considering the high cost of antirabies serum and vaccination, it is essential to take necessary measures reduce the incidence of this problem.