![\"Jeanna](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/SEI_203891580-a538.jpg\")
\n\t\t15-year-old Jeanna Giese made medical history in 2004 after being bitten by a bat<\/p>\n
\t\t
\n\t\t15-year-old Jeanna Giese made medical history in 2004 after being bitten by a bat<\/p>\n
It was a normal Sunday for Jeanna Giese in her hometown of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin<\/a>, and began in the same manner as it usually did, with a trip to church with her family.<\/p>\n However, an unexpected turn of events that day in September 2004 left the 15-year-old fighting for her life against a fatal disease<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n A wild bat<\/a> had got into the church and caused havoc as it tried to escape through the stained glass windows. As worshippers listened to the sermon, they swatted at the bat with their hats as it frantically flew over their heads. One usher\u2019s powerful hit saw the bat crash to the floor.\u00a0<\/p>\n Jeanna had always loved animals and the teenager felt sorry for the \u2018stunned\u2019 creature, so after gaining her mum\u2019s permission, carried it outside.<\/p>\n \u2018I found a pine tree I thought would be perfect to let it rest on, but before I could, it clamped down hard on my finger. The puncture mark was no bigger than a pinprick, but it oozed blood and was very painful,\u2019 Jeanna recalled in an interview with The Guardian<\/a>.<\/p>\n She pulled the bat\u2019s fang out of her left index finger, and once home, her mother cleaned the wound with antiseptic. The incident was surreal, but they never suspected for a moment that things would spiral far out of their control.<\/p>\n It was around three weeks later, that Jeanna felt severely unwell. \u2018I woke up and I could not get out of bed, my face was flush, I could hardly move,\u2019 she later told Fox News<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \t\t As she began vomiting uncontrollably and suffering double vision, her concerned parents took Jeanna to the nearby\u00a0 St. Agnes Hospital, where doctors were baffled as to what was wrong with her. Tests for diseases, including meningitis and Lyme Disease, provided negative results, so eventually Jeanna was sent home.<\/p>\n However, her symptoms only got worse and two days later she returned to hospital with her parents and was kept in overnight.\u00a0When her mother mentioned the bat bite to a doctor, he looked visibly concerned. <\/p>\n Quickly, Jeanna was transferred to the Children\u2019s Hospital of Wisconsin, where she met Dr. Rodney Willoughby, a pediatric doctor specialising in infectious diseases, who tested her for rabies.\u00a0<\/p>\n The next day it was confirmed that she had contracted the deadly disease- but it was too late for the life-saving rabies vaccine<\/a>, which needs to be administered before symptoms. Nobody had ever survived without it.<\/p>\n Talking about his patient, Dr Willoughby later admitted to Fox News: \u2018I thought she was going to die. That\u2019s what they all did. That\u2019s about the extent of my knowledge of rabies at the time, that there wasn\u2019t much to do. It\u2019s really 100% fatal.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n Jeanna\u2019s mother and father were given the stark choice of leaving their daughter to die in the hospital or at home, \u2018My parents were devastated. The whole thing happened so quickly that they couldn\u2019t process it,\u2019 she would recall later.<\/p>\n \t\t However, Dr. Rodney refused to give up and suggested putting Jeanna into a coma to suppress her brain function, which would give her immune system a chance to fight the rabies virus.\u00a0<\/p>\n Usually, the virus travels to the brain through the nerves and spinal cord, causing the body to shut down, but it was hoped his radical treatment plan could slow the process.<\/p>\n Almost exactly one month after the bite, Jeanna was placed into a coma<\/a> on October 10, and was woken up two weeks later.<\/p>\n \u2018I tried to scream, but no sound came out. I couldn\u2019t walk, talk, sit up or do anything,\u2019 she remembered. \u2018I was basically a newborn baby at the age of 15. I couldn\u2019t do anything.\u2019.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The teenager spent 11 weeks in the hospital and then two years at the outpatient therapy unit so she could relearn the basic skills. It took two months to walk again, and two years without any help.<\/p>\n \t\t \u2018Since I was, at that point, the only person to have survived rabies without a vaccine, I became a global news sensation and had to work on my recovery with film crews documenting every minute. It was overwhelming. What helped was the support from my family and the doctors, as well as letters from all over the world,\u2019 she explained.<\/p>\n \u2018While not every case has had the same positive outcome, it is incredible that there is now a chance of surviving a disease once considered fatal without a vaccination. I am overjoyed to know that I helped pave the way for that change.\u2019<\/p>\n Following Jeanna\u2019s case, there have been 45 known survivors of rabies \u2013 18 of whom went through what\u2019s now called the Milwaukee Protocol, a medically induced coma and antiviral drugs.<\/p>\n However, while the method was celebrated for saving the teenager\u2019s life, it was also deemed controversial by some, who questioned the ethics of using an unproven treatment on a child without truly knowing the potential risks and side effects of the treatment.<\/p>\n Dr\u00a0Suzanne\u00a0Wylie, GP and medical adviser for\u00a0IQdoctor,<\/a><\/strong> told Metro<\/strong>: \u2018Multiple attempts to reproduce this outcome have failed. In at least three documented cases, patients who received the same treatment have died. <\/p>\n \u2018The virus uses sophisticated tactics to avoid immune detection. Interestingly, wild strains of rabies replicate more slowly than lab-altered ones, which may help them spread silently and avoid triggering a full immune response.<\/p>\n \t\t \u2018Given these complexities, many experts now view the Milwaukee Protocol as a drastic and unreliable measure. The survival of the original patient may have had more to do with a weaker form of the virus or unusual genetic resistance than with the treatment itself.\u2019<\/p>\n Dr Wylie adds that the key takeaway is that rabies is preventable, but through immediate vaccination after exposure: \u2018Public education, animal vaccination, and timely medical care are the most reliable ways to stop this deadly virus before it takes hold.\u2019<\/p>\n \t\t Now 36 and a mother of three, Jeanna still suffers from nerve damage following her ordeal. However, she manages to live a happy life, working at the Children\u2019s Museum of Fond du Lac and raising awareness about rabies in the hope of reducing the number of cases.<\/p>\n Jeanna also volunteers for bat conservation charities. <\/p>\n \u2018One might have nearly taken my life, but I feel it\u2019s still my duty to protect theirs,\u2019 she has since explained, adding, \u2018A lot of people are astonished that I actually love bats<\/a>.\u2019<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tThe rabies virus explained\t\t\t<\/p>\n \u2018Rabies is a fatal but preventable disease. Although cases in UK travellers are very rare, a recent tragic case underscores the importance of awareness and timely treatment,\u2019 says Dr Chris Smith<\/a> of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM). This week, British grandmother Yvonne Ford, 59, died of rabies<\/a> after she was scratched by a puppy while on a Morocco holiday<\/a> in February.<\/p>\n \u2018The disease is endemic in many parts of the world, including popular holiday destinations such as Morocco, Turkey, India, Thailand, the Philippines, and Indonesia. <\/p>\n All human rabies cases reported in the UK since 1902 have been acquired abroad: typically through dog bites. Since 1946, 26 imported cases have been reported, with the most recent prior to this being in 2018, following a bite from a cat in Morocco.<\/p>\n \u2018Travellers to countries where rabies is present should seek pre-travel advice regarding vaccination.<\/a><\/p>\n \u2018Rabies is usually transmitted to humans through the bite or scratch of an infected animal, most often dogs, but also cats and bats. Even a minor scratch or lick on broken skin can pose a risk.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2018If exposed, immediate first aid is essential: the wound should be thoroughly washed with soap and water, and prompt post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) \u2013 including a course of rabies vaccinations and, in some cases, rabies immunoglobulin \u2013 should be sought. These interventions are highly effective when started early.\u2019<\/p>\n Do you have a story you\u2019d like to share? Get in touch by emailing Josie.Copson@metro.co.uk<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Share your views in the comments below.<\/strong><\/p>\n Arrow Arrow![\"Jeanna](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/PM_7995865-0632.jpg\")
\n\t\tIt took three weeks before Jeanna began to feel unwell (Picture: AP)<\/p>\n![\"2F15R5E](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/SEI_256110363-ca33.jpg\")
\n\t\tThe disease progressed quickly (Picture: Rick Wood\/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel\/MCT\/Sipa USA)<\/p>\n![\"Jeanna](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/SEI_203891591-64f7.jpg\")
\n\t\tJeanna\u2019s life, including her marriage, has been documented by the local press<\/p>\n![\"2F0B91F](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/SEI_256110361-72b2.jpg\")
\n\t\tJeanna with her parents Anne and John Giese at her graduation (Picture: Rick Wood\/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel\/MCT\/Sipa USA)<\/p>\n![\"Jeanna](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/SEI_256110434-62e5.jpg\")
\n\t\tShe is now a mum (Picture: @childrenswi)<\/p>\n
\nMORE: I\u2019m twice my daughter\u2019s age but everyone thinks we\u2019re sisters<\/a><\/p>\n
\nMORE: I never gave up on my Olympic dream \u2013 even when fleeing my home<\/a><\/p>\n