Rare rabies death from organ transplant has NC tie

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Health officials are recommending vaccinations for at least one North Carolina relative of a rabies-infected man who died in Florida in 2011 and whose transplanted kidney fatally infected a Maryland man.

North Carolina's top public health veterinarian said Friday fewer than five family members from North Carolina visited the rabies-infected man while he was hospitalized in Florida. Dr. Carl Williams says health officials have contacted the relatives and are evaluating their rabies risks.

Williams wouldn't describe where the man lived before moving to Florida, saying even naming the county could identify the rabies victim. Rabies is common in wildlife statewide.

The Maryland man's rare death from a disease-infected organ means three others who received the former North Carolina man's other kidney, heart and liver are getting treatment.