Additional Coverage:
A Michigan resident has died from rabies transmitted through an organ transplant they received at an Ohio hospital in December 2024. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) confirmed the death, which occurred in January 2025, and stated that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed the rabies diagnosis.
The MDHHS, working with the Ohio Department of Health and the CDC, conducted a public health investigation, determining the transplanted organ as the source of the rabies virus. Healthcare providers and others who had contact with the Michigan resident were assessed for potential rabies exposure and received appropriate preventative care.
Officials emphasized that there is no threat to the general public. The organ donor was not a resident of Michigan or Ohio.
No further details about the donor or recipient have been released.
Organ transplants involve routine screenings for various diseases and conditions, but rabies testing is not standard procedure. According to the National Institutes of Health, no country or institution currently requires rabies screening for organ donors. This tragic case echoes previous incidents, including the 2013 deaths of four Maryland residents and the 2004 deaths of three individuals who contracted rabies from infected organ transplants.
Rabies, a deadly viral disease, primarily spreads through bites or scratches from infected animals. The virus attacks the central nervous system, leading to brain dysfunction and symptoms such as anxiety, confusion, agitation, and hallucinations.
If medical attention is not received before symptoms appear, rabies is almost always fatal. While around 60,000 people in the U.S. receive post-exposure rabies treatment annually, fewer than ten deaths occur each year.
Bats are the most common source of rabies transmission to humans in the U.S., followed by raccoons, skunks, and foxes.