A six-year-old girl who was bitten by a stray dog a month ago succumbed to rabies at Government Medical College Hospital (GMCH), Kozhikode, despite having received the rabies vaccine.

The girl, Ziya Faris from Peruvallur near Calicut University in the district, was mauled by the dog on March 29 when she stepped out of her house to get some sweets. She was bitten on the head and limbs.

Ziya received the rabies vaccine and treatment for the wounds at GMCH. According to her father Salman Faris, she was discharged after the initial vaccination, and her wounds were dressed again during a follow-up visit.

Ziya developed a fever six days ago and tested positive for rabies. She spent six days in the intensive care unit (ICU) at GMCH before succumbing to rabies in the early hours of Tuesday.

Ziya’s family alleged lapses in treatment at GMCH. But the hospital authorities denied the allegations. They said they had followed a proper protocol.

A few others too had been bitten by the same dog on March 29 at Peruvallur. None of them developed any rabies signs.

The bite wound on her head might have directly impacted Ziya’s brain, possibly making the rabies infection more severe and causing her death.