Although I am no expert on the vampire
mythology or the speculative scientific
explanations, there are a few possibilities that
others have proposed. Perhaps the most
plausible explanation is that the vampirism
mythology is based on the viral disease rabies
(Gomez, 1982; 1992; 1998; Heick, 1992). The
vampire folklore of Bram Stoker’s Dracula
seems to have originated in Central Europe in
the latter half of the 18th century where
injuries and deaths of people living in rural
villages caused by wild or rabid dogs and
wolves were common (Theodorides 1986). It
is around this time, that Eastern Europe was
rife with claims of vampire sightings.