A recent study has revealed a concerning case of around 3,000 people, mostly from financially poor families, dying each year in Nepal due to snake bites. The staggering figure is based on research conducted by Professor François Chapuis from the University of Geneva and Dr. Sanjeev Kumar Sharma, a specialist in snakebites at BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences in Dharan. The research surveyed 67,000 households and found that 35,000 people are bitten by snakes each year in Nepal with roughly one-tenth of the bites resulting in death. This contrasts with official statistics, which report that 9,100 to 9,500 people are bitten by snakes annually, with 10 percent of cases turning fatal. According to research, snake bites kill some 3,000 people annually. The overwhelming majority of them – 80 percent – die before reaching the hospital. However, the deaths go unreported because these occur outside on-the-way to hospitals, where the cause of death is not documented. Given that snakebite is a curable condition if the victim receives treatment on time, the high number of deaths is alarming. The government must take a multi-pronged approach to snakebite control, such as raising public awareness and expanding snakebite treatment centers with necessary facilities and skilled manpower to reduce the deaths related to snakebite.
Snakebite fatalities are particularly high in Nepal due to two species of snakes: kraits and cobras. If bitten by these snakes, victims must reach the hospital within an hour, or they will most likely die. Kraits, which typically bite at night, often deliver a painless bite with a minor wound, making it difficult for the victim to recognize the bite in time. As a result, many victims die while deep asleep before they can receive medical attention. Even if individuals bitten by cobras or kraits manage to reach the hospital on time, many still die due to a lack of proper treatment. The shortage of essential medical equipment in many treatment centers is another factor that worsens the situation. Even when patients reach a hospital within an hour, those with complications often die because there aren’t enough facilities, such as ICU beds or ventilators, to counter the effects of the venom spread all over the body. Experts have also pointed out the limited effectiveness of the free antivenom provided by the Government of Nepal. The antivenom does not work for all species of snakes, as there are five venomous snake species in Nepal, and the available antivenom is not effective for all of them.
Snakebite cases on the rise in Itahari
Snakebite is a curable health issue and does not require the government to make huge investments. The fact that more than 3,000 people, most of them poor, die each year presents a grim picture of how accountable the government is to its own people. In most cases, ordinary farmers are exposed to the danger of snakes while sleeping on the ground, collecting straw, or working in the fields. Additionally, many poor farmers live in mud houses with cracks in the walls, sleep in hammocks, or have rat holes in their homes, exposing them to snakebites. Although the government has expanded snakebite treatment centers and provided free antivenom, the overall reduction in snakebite-related deaths remains disappointingly low. There is still insufficient public awareness and limited access to treatment centers in remote areas. Government agencies must work towards expanding treatment centers with adequate infrastructure and skilled medical professionals and focus on raising awareness about snakebite prevention at the village level. Simple precautionary measures, such as using mosquito nets while sleeping, plugging the holes that allow rats into homes, carrying a light when going out at night, wearing gumboots or gloves in the fields, and using gloves when handling grass, as well as installing nets on windows and doors, could significantly reduce snakebite-related deaths. It is high time the government addressed these critical areas to reduce snakebite-related deaths.
