Eli5 why rabies is 100% lethal
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It isn’t. But the virus very quietly/“sneakily” goes to the brain before it starts actually causing symptoms, so by the time you are symptomatic, you are most likely past saving. Rabies can be prevented/treated by a series of vaccinations administered as soon as possible after the suspected infection. The patient must be proactive in order to protect themselves.
There is a Reddit copypasta that gets pasted every time the subject of rabies comes up, and explains how rabies kills. It’s pretty scary stuff.
The rabies virus can pass through the barrier between blood and the brain, but antibiotics can not. So it is treatable before the virus gets into the brain and the patient starts showing symptoms, but not after. There have been cases where it actually was treated after that by putting the person into a coma and letting them develop their own immunity (or letting the virus die out? Not an expert, so not sure about the details), but it is very rare to actually work
Edit: fixed some grammar
You can find a good and easy to understand video [Here](https://youtu.be/4u5I8GYB79Y)
They have many other Eli5 friendly videos with channels in alternative languages too.
There was one woman who survived but she was pretty messed up after and took over a year to mostly recover but she’s studying biology now. I had originally thought she miraculously survived on her own but doctors induced a coma to give her immune system time to fight the virus while keeping her brain from killing her. I hope I’m not oversimplifying it, read the article for fuller details.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/jeanna-giese-rabies-survivor/
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