MODEL RELEASED. Rabies. Male patient drooling due to infection by a rabies virus. Rabies is an acute and almost always fatal inflammation of the brain in mammals. Symptoms include anxiety, confusion, agitation and other mental disturbances, leading to delerium and hallucinations. Infection is often through the bite of a wild animal that is infected with the virus. The virus spreads to the brain and also to tissues like the salivary glands, leading to classic symptoms of drooling and hydrophobia, a spasmodic contraction of the throat when eating or drinking. In unvaccinated people, rabies is fatal once the symptoms appear. Treatment is supportive to alleviate the symptoms. Photographed in Africa.