Residents in northern Western Australia are being urged to avoid contact with bats following recent reports of bites. A local resident from Pilbara learned the seriousness of bat bites after being informed by doctors that she required treatment for lyssavirus, a potentially deadly virus found in a small percentage of the region's bat population.

Elizabeth Heseltine, a Karratha resident, was bitten while attempting to remove a bat from her home. Concerned that the bat might become trapped in her roof or be harmed by her cats, she tried to catch it using a towel and then her hands. "I didn't think anything of it — I mean, I've worked around animals my whole life and just thought 'oh well, it's fine, Australia's pretty disease free,'" she said. After the bite, she contacted the Health Direct line, which advised her to seek immediate medical attention.

"I spent most of the day there and can tell you from experience that the course of treatment is not overly pleasant," Ms. Heseltine said. She is required to return to the hospital three more times for follow-up injections. During her treatment, she received immunoglobulin injections in her finger. Ms. Heseltine noted that she was not the only recent victim of bat bites. "The doctor made a joke about whether it was a full moon or not, because apparently I'm like the fourth person recently to get bitten by a bat," she said.

Curtin University professor of ecology, Bill Bateman, emphasized the risks associated with bat bites, particularly the transmission of lyssavirus. "We do have Australian bat lyssavirus, and that is very, very similar to rabies and it has a very, very high mortality rate if humans get it," Dr. Bateman stated. The Department of Health confirmed that there have been no reported cases of lyssavirus in Western Australia to date.

Dr. Bateman explained that lyssavirus is present in about one percent of the bat population in the Pilbara. "Fortunately, only a tiny percentage of bats have been shown to have [lyssavirus], but of course it's just not worth taking the risk if you get in any way scratched by a bat," he said. He noted that bats typically avoid human interaction and that bites are unusual. "They're not aggressive and lyssavirus doesn't necessarily make them more aggressive," he added.

Dr. Bateman advised that if a bat is flying indoors, the best course of action is to open a window to allow it to exit. He also mentioned that bats may bite if they are sick or if people attempt to capture them.

The Department of Health stated that confirmation of lyssavirus requires laboratory testing of symptomatic patients, and health practitioners must report any suspected or confirmed cases. They urged anyone bitten, scratched, or exposed to a bat to seek medical attention promptly to treat the wound and evaluate the risk of infection. "People who are bitten or scratched by a bat may require rabies vaccine and immunoglobulin to prevent Australian bat lyssavirus infection," the statement said.