How do people become infected with rabies?
The most common way for people to become infected with rabies is from the bite of a rabies-infected (rabid) animal. It is also possible, but extremely rare, for people to develop rabies if infectious material (such as saliva) from a rabid animal gets directly into their eyes, nose, mouth, or an open wound. Once clinical signs of rabies develop, the viral infection causes a rapidly fatal encephalitis (inflammation of the brain).
