Key Highlights
- However, in rural areas, snakebites still account for 58,000 deaths every year, affecting workers in paddy fields as much as subsistence farmers in dry landscapes.
- Snake venoms generally cause three types of damage: blood disorders, muscle paralysis, and tissue death.
- Viper bites commonly cause blood-related disorders, while elapid snakes (like cobras) typically trigger nerve-related paralysis.
- A standard antivenom has been designed against the venom of India’s ‘Big Four’ species: spectacled cobra, common krait, Russell’s viper, and saw-scaled viper.
- Venom from these snakes is needed for making this antivenom.
