[Healthcare profile of rabies pre-exposure prophylaxis in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, 2007-2014].

OBJECTIVE

to describe the profile of healthcare provision regarding rabies pre-exposure prophylaxis (RPrEP) in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, as compared with the Technical Standards for Rabies Prophylaxis in Humans.

METHODS

this was a descriptive study using Notifiable Disease Information System data on anti-rabies healthcare provided between 2007 and 2014.

RESULTS

only 2.4% of anti-rabies healthcare related to RPrEP (5,721/239,245), 42.5% of these were veterinary, biology and zootechnics students and 10.3% were professionals from the same areas; individuals aged 20 to 64 accounted for 71.8% of the total number of people vaccinated and the frequency of this form of prophylaxis was 53.5/100,000 inhabitants for the state as a whole, varying between 13.1 to 185.1/100,000 inhabitants in the state's different health districts.

CONCLUSION

RPrEP frequency was found to be low, suggesting that this rabies prevention tool has been neglected, leaving a large number of people at occupational risk.