Recently, some research showed that the rabies virus may not be as uniformly deadly as we’ve always thought. The now-famous “Milwaukee Protocol,” which involves a medically-induced coma (among other things) to support the patient while their body fights off the virus and was credited for the survival of 5 people with rabies, has not been successful when used on at least 30 other people with rabies. Why? Possible explanations include infection with a weaker strain of the rabies virus; and strong immune responses that more successfully fought off the virus in these patients than in others. Apparently, the blood-brain barrier, which is a specialized feature of the blood vessels in the brain, may play a key role in the body’s (and brain’s) ability to successfully get rid of the virus.
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