What are the recommended post-exposure prophylaxis protocols for patients who have been bitten by a potentially rabid animal?

For high-risk exposures, such as severe and multiple bites to the head and neck or from a confirmed rabid animal, treatment should ideally be started within 12 hours of reporting ¹.

The mainstay of post-exposure treatment is the rabies vaccine given by intramuscular injection at 0, 3, 7, and 21 days ¹.

Human rabies immunoglobulin (HRIG) may provide short-term immunity in the first week following treatment initiation ¹.

It is important that vaccination and human rabies immunoglobulin are never given at the same anatomical site, and vaccine doses are administered in alternate arms ¹.