Colleagues of critically ill man tested for rabies

Doctors were yesterday awaiting the results of further tests on a man with suspected rabies as it emerged that colleagues of the wildlife enthusiast had sought vaccinations against the disease.

David McRae is critically ill in Ninewells Hospital, Dundee, after being bitten by a bat while on a field exercise in the summer. Members of the Angus Bat Group who accompanied him on the exercise, some of whom were also bitten, said they had sought treatment, although none had developed symptoms.

In a statement, they said the situation was causing "severe stress and anxiety" although it was not known whether their friend received his potentially fatal bite on that trip.

Doctors said on Wednesday that Mr McRae, 55, was suffering symptoms of European bat lyssavirus, a rare strain of rabies which causes fever and creeping paralysis. However, initial tests proved inconclusive.

Mr McRae, from Guthrie, Angus, has worked with bats for a number of years and has carried out conservation work for the wildlife agency Scottish Natural Heritage The organisation has suspended licences of all but a few handlers in Scotland following the case.

Wildlife experts said the fact that bats were now hibernating had helped stem public concern. A NHS helpline for people concerned about bats and rabies had received only 11 calls since Wednesday.

A spokesman for Scottish Natural Heritage said: "If this had happened during the summer when bats are flying around, we could have expected a lot more calls. The timing has allowed us to concentrate our energies into tackling the issues we need to address right now."

Public health chiefs say the general public is largely free of risk as long as they avoid handling bats.