Volume 19, Number 5—May 2013
Another Dimension
Zombies—A Pop Culture Resource for Public Health Awareness
Melissa Nasiruddin, Monique Halabi, Alexander Dao, Kyle Chen, and Brandon Brown
Table
A comparison of zombies folklore and rabies epidemiology
| Characteristics | Zombies | Rabies |
|---|---|---|
| Susceptibility | Human infection requires fictional apocalyptic environment | Requires environment with infected animals, such as dogs or bats |
| Cause | Tyrant virus, other viruses, unknown pathogens | Mononegavirales |
| Virus transmission | Bites and scratches; unknown pathogen; spread human to human; 100% effectiveness | Bites; saliva infected with rabies virus; spread animal to human |
| Virulence | Victims die and become “walking dead” | Victims die and stay dead |
| Symptoms | Fever, chills, loss of hair and pigmentation, hobbling gait | Delirium, anxiety, stress, hallucinations, muscle spasms, convulsions |
| Control methods | Avoiding bites from existing zombies; intervention includes destroying brain of zombies | Avoiding bites from dogs and bats; postexposure prophylaxis |
| Exposure in popular culture | ||
| Nonscientific media | Movies, books, television shows | Movies, books, television shows |
| Scientific media | Zombie web sites, CDC, Nature | Academic journals, global health Web sites, NIH, CDC, Nature |
*CDC, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; NIH, National Institutes of Health.
Page created: April 23, 2013
Page updated: April 23, 2013
Page reviewed: April 23, 2013
The conclusions, findings, and opinions expressed by authors contributing to this journal do not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Public Health Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the authors' affiliated institutions. Use of trade names is for identification only and does not imply endorsement by any of the groups named above.