World Health Assembly agrees to reduce snake-bite victims

The World Health Assembly (WHA), just closed Saturday, has agreed to a resolution that aims to reduce the number of people around the world who are either killed or are physically or mentally disabled by snakebites.

A hungry snake has devoured a reptile in one mouthful as they encountered one another on a tree branch at Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya, April 3, 2018.[Photo: IC]

An estimated 1.8 to 2.7 million people are bitten by venomous snakes each year, with between 81,000 and 138,000 people dying as a result, delegates to the WHA heard.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said Saturday that delegates to the WHA acknowledged the urgent need to improve access to safe, effective and affordable antivenoms for snakebite.

"For every person who dies following a snakebite, another four or five are left with disabilities such as blindness, restricted mobility or amputation, and post-traumatic stress disorder," said WHO.

Delegates urged the WHO to accelerate and coordinate global efforts to control snakebite "envenoming" -- the life-threatening disease that follows the bite of a venomous snake.

Snakebite overwhelmingly affects people from poor agricultural and herding communities and was categorized by WHO last year as a high-priority neglected tropical disease.

Poor prevention, health worker training, diagnosis and treatment of cases of snakebite, as well as a lack of available tools, are all holding up progress on addressing the global burden of the disease.

Bites by venomous snakes can cause paralysis that may prevent breathing, bleeding disorders that can lead to a fatal hemorrhage, irreversible kidney failure and tissue damage that can cause permanent disability and limb amputation.

Most of these occur in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, according to the WHO.

In Asia, up to 2 million people are envenomed by snakes each year, while in Africa there are an estimated 435,000 to 580,000 snake bites annually that need treatment.

Children often suffer more severe effects than adults, due to their smaller body mass, says the WHO.