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Volume 11
Issue 9
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Review

Rabies in Military Personnel: Epidemiology, Clinical Challenges, and Strategies for Prevention and Management

by
Elodie Monchatre-Leroy
1,2,†,
Diana Isabela Costescu Strachinaru
3,4,*,†,
Oula Itani
5,
Sophie Wensierski
6,
Alexandre Servat
1 and
Patrick Soentjens
3,7
1
Laboratoire Anses de la Rage et de la Faune Sauvage de Nancy, 54220 Malzéville, France
2
Unité IDEALISS, Institut Polytechnique UniLaSalle, Université d’Artois, 76134 Mont-Saint-Aignan, France
3
Centre for Infectious Diseases, Queen Astrid Military Hospital, 1120 Brussels, Belgium
4
Infectious Diseases, CHIREC Hospitals Group, 1160 Brussels, Belgium
5
Institut Pasteur, Centre Médical, Centre d’infectiologie Necker-Pasteur, 75015 Paris, France
6
24th Veterinary Group, 3rd Army Medical Center, 51600 Suippes, France
7
Department of Clinical Sciences, Institute of Tropical Medicine, 2000 Antwerp, Belgium
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Trop. Med. Infect. Dis. 2026, 11(9), 243; https://doi.org/10.3390/tropicalmed11090243
Submission received: 16 December 2025 / Revised: 17 August 2026 / Accepted: 18 August 2026 / Published: 26 August 2026
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Military Medicine: An Everlasting War against Tropical and Infectious Diseases)
Versions Notes

Abstract

For deployed military personnel, a single exposure from a rabies-infected animal can become a death sentence. With a case fatality rate approaching 100%, rabies remains a serious, yet insufficiently acknowledged hazard for service members, for whom prevention in operational environments poses unique challenges. We conducted a systematic literature search to identify relevant studies on rabies risk in armed forces personnel. By analysing rabies-related fatalities in the military, this review highlights the operational challenges posed by animal bites during deployment, including underreporting and delayed access to care, which compromise timely post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) administration. Special emphasis is placed on prevention strategies, including pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and animal control protocols tailored to military settings. Its aim is to provide a comprehensive, evidence-based resource for healthcare professionals involved in the protection of deployed forces against this ancient yet still deadly infectious disease.
Keywords: rabies; lyssavirus; rabies pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP); rabies post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP); military; deployment; animal bites; neglected disease rabies; lyssavirus; rabies pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP); rabies post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP); military; deployment; animal bites; neglected disease

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Monchatre-Leroy, E.; Costescu Strachinaru, D.I.; Itani, O.; Wensierski, S.; Servat, A.; Soentjens, P. Rabies in Military Personnel: Epidemiology, Clinical Challenges, and Strategies for Prevention and Management. Trop. Med. Infect. Dis. 2026, 11, 243. https://doi.org/10.3390/tropicalmed11090243

AMA Style

Monchatre-Leroy E, Costescu Strachinaru DI, Itani O, Wensierski S, Servat A, Soentjens P. Rabies in Military Personnel: Epidemiology, Clinical Challenges, and Strategies for Prevention and Management. Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease. 2026; 11(9):243. https://doi.org/10.3390/tropicalmed11090243

Chicago/Turabian Style

Monchatre-Leroy, Elodie, Diana Isabela Costescu Strachinaru, Oula Itani, Sophie Wensierski, Alexandre Servat, and Patrick Soentjens. 2026. "Rabies in Military Personnel: Epidemiology, Clinical Challenges, and Strategies for Prevention and Management" Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease 11, no. 9: 243. https://doi.org/10.3390/tropicalmed11090243

APA Style

Monchatre-Leroy, E., Costescu Strachinaru, D. I., Itani, O., Wensierski, S., Servat, A., & Soentjens, P. (2026). Rabies in Military Personnel: Epidemiology, Clinical Challenges, and Strategies for Prevention and Management. Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease, 11(9), 243. https://doi.org/10.3390/tropicalmed11090243

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