SNAKEBITES
Snake-bite is an environmental, occupational and climatic hazard in rural a urban areas of many
countries of the South-East Asia Region of the WHO Attention to the following recommendations
for community education might reduce the risk of bites.
Venomous (poisonous) snakes caused more than 2000 of the 6000 snakebites in the United
States annually (Tintinallier et al,2020).
Across the globe, between 4.5 and 5.4 million people get bitten by snakes each year, with
81,000 to 138,000 dying from complications (WHO, 2019).
Children between 1 and 9 Years of age are the most likely victims. The greatest number of bites
occurs during the daylight hours and early evening of the summer months. The most frequent
poisonous snakebite in the United States occurs from Crotalidae, otherwise called pit vipers,
such as water moccasins, copperheads, and rattle. snakes.
The most common site is the upper extremity (ENA,2020) Of pit viper bites, 75% to 80% result in
envenomation (injection of a poisonous material by sting, spine, bite, or other means); the rest
result in what are called dry bites (Tintinall: et al., 2020). Venomous snakebites are medical
emergencies.
There are three families of venomous snakes in South-East Asia: Elapidae, Viperidae and Colubridae.
ELAPIDAE: have relatively short fixed front (proteroglyph) fangs
* This family includes cobras, king cobra, kraits, coral snakes, Australasian snakes and sea snakes.
Elapidae are relatively long, thin, uniformly-coloured snakes with large smooth symmetrical scales
(plates) on the top (dorsum) of the head.
* There is no loreal scale between the pre- ocular and nasal scales. Some, notably cobras, raise the front
part of their body off the ground and spread and flatten the neck to form a hood.
* Several species of cobra can spit their venom for one metre or more towards the eyes of perceived
enemies.
* Venomous sea snakes have flattened paddle-like tails
VIPERIDAE:
Have relatively long fangs (solenoglyph) which are normally folded flat against the upper jaw but, when
the snake strikes, they are erected.
There are two subfamilies,
* Typical vipers (Viperinae)
* Pit vipers (Crotalinae).
The Crotalinae have a special sense organ, the loreal pit organ, to detect their warm-blooded prey.
This is situated between the nostril and the eye.
Viperidae are relatively short, thick-bodied snakes with many small rough scales on the top (dorsum) of
the head and characteristic patterns of coloured markings on the dorsal surface of the body.
Other medically important venomous snakes
COLUBRIDAE:
≥ Two species of medically important Colubridae have been identified in the SEA
Region, the red-necked keelback Rhabdophis subminiatus
Large pythons (Boidae), notably the reticulated python Python reticularis in Indonesia, have been
reported to attack and even ingest humans, usually inebriated farmers
Venom Apparatus
~ The ability to inject venom into prey animals by means of cannulated, modified teeth
evolved over 140 million years ago in bird-like dinosaurs and later in snakes ^ The venom glands of
Elapidae and Viperidae are situated behind the eye, surrounded by
compressor muscles.
Fangs allow the snake to introduce venom deep into the tissues of its natural prey.
~ If a human is bitten, venom is usually injected subcutaneously or intramuscularly.
Spitting cobras can squeeze the venom out of the tips of their fangs producing a fine spray directed
towards the eyes of an aggressor.
The average dry weight of venom injected at a strike is approximately 60 mg in N. naja, 13 mg in E.
carinatus and 63 mg in D. russelit.
Large pythons (Boidae), notably the reticulated python Python reticularis in Indonesia, have been
reported to attack and even ingest humans, usually inebriated farmers
