Last Thursday, a 4-year-old boy, Samul Nepali, died of a snake bite in Sunwal Municipality-2 of West Nawalparasi. He was bitten by a snake while playing inside the room and died during treatment at Lumbini Regional Hospital, Butwal. On 30th June 2081, Runa Pal died after being bitten by a snake in West Nawalparasi.

She was also bitten by a snake while she was sleeping at home and died in the district hospital during treatment. Paru Chaudhary of Tulsipur sub-metropolitan city who was cutting grass in the garden in the afternoon of 12 June 2081 in Dang also died due to snake bite. According to District Police Office Dang, 10 people died from snake bites in the last financial year alone.

Although the number of people who die due to snakebite after the start of summer and dry season is mentioned throughout the country, due to the lack of good and reliable reporting system, according to government data, the annual death toll is only 131. However, according to a study conducted by Dr. Sanjeev Kumar Sharma, a snakebite expert who is also a professor at the BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, 3,000 people die every year in Nepal due to snakebite.

According to him, there is still an illusion in the village that poisonous stones, herbs and chicken tails can extract poison. Even after a few hours of the snake bite, the symptoms of the poison may not show. However, after 12 hours of being bitten, there is a possibility of fatal consequences such as stopping the breathing process,' he said The cases of snake bites have started to increase . There are many cases of snakebite in the country from May to October. According to the Shahid Shukraraj Tropical and Communicable Disease Hospital in Kathmandu, currently 7 to 8 people are coming to the hospital daily to treat snakebite patients.

According to Bhaleshwar Yadav, the emergency in-charge of Shukraraj Tropical and Communicable Disease Hospital, people who have been bitten by snakes come from Kathmandu Valley and the surrounding districts of Kavre, Makwanpur, Dharding, Nuwakot, Rasuwa, Gorkha, Solukhumbu for treatment. "Among those who come for treatment, 3 to 4 people need to be admitted," he said, "a few days ago, two people had to be admitted to the ICU." About 10,000 people have been bitten by snakes. 10 percent of them are bitten by poisonous snakes. According to Dr. Hemant Ojha, Head of Zoonotic and Communicable Disease Branch of EDCD, 131 people die every year due to venomous snake bites. Dr. Ojha, Head of Zoonotic and Infectious Diseases Department, said, "The number of premature deaths is high when time is spent in work such as taking out poison by sucking and falling into superstitions in remote areas."

Dr. According to Sharma, most of the deaths due to snake bites are women and children. "There is no other option than taking the patient to a hospital where anti-venom is available for treatment after being bitten by a snake," he said, "a budget of Rs. 1 crore has been allocated for the purchase of anti-venom for the current financial year." are . According to the data of EDCD, in 2077/78, 2078/79 and 79/80 respectively, 7 thousand 902 people, 9 thousand 346 people and 9 thousand 120 people were bitten by snakes . Out of them, 2,916 people were bitten by poisonous snakes in all three financial years.

In the last fiscal year, the highest number of snakes killed 2,612 in Koshi, followed by 2,519 in Lumbini, 1,460 in Madhesh, 1,191 in Gandaki, 988 in Bagmati, 288 in Karnali and Sudurpaschim. There is a figure of 142 people in the province. Snakebite expert Dr. According to Sharma's study, most of the cases of snake bites are farmers and the poor. According to Dr. Sharma's study, 80 percent of people die before being taken to the hospital due to snakebite. As a result, snakebite deaths are not recorded in the government statistics. When the ground heats up due to heat, when it rains in monsoon, the snake comes out when water gets into the dust. "In summer, snakes go out for breeding and if they are not careful, the cases of snakebite increase," he said.

Dangerous species of snakes

There are 89 species of snakes in Nepal. Among them, 17 species with poisonous teeth in the front of the head, including Goman, Rajagoman, Karat, Roussel Viper, King Cobra and Coral Snake are considered highly poisonous snakes. According to EDCD, most cases of snakebites in Nepal seem to be from Goman, Karat and Elapid snakes. Their stings do not cause bleeding wounds. There are no visible bite marks or wounds.

snake bite expert Dr. According to Sharma, anti-venom for snakebite is available only for four species of snakes in Nepal, one of the various species of Goman snake, one of the six species of Karat snake, viper and bage snake. "Anti-venom is not available in case of bites by snakes of other species including Raj Goman," he said, "It is a reasonable option to be careful to avoid being bitten by snakes." It prefers to live in agricultural and grasslands, forests and residential areas . Often it is found in houses, mud, piles of bricks, stones. Coral snakes are found in forests, scrub and lowland and agricultural lands in the lower mountains. Snakes of the Goman species are found in the Rai region. And it has been recorded spreading in the low mountain area at an altitude of 1600 meters . It is found in forests, grasslands, agricultural lands and residential areas.

Precautions to be taken to avoid snakebite

Snakebite expert Prof. Dr. According to Sharma, cases of snakebite are more common when sleeping outside the house, going to the fields, going to the forest, going to the forest or sleeping inside the house. To avoid this, you should walk only with a flashlight at night, sleep with a hammock hanging, look carefully at the bed while sleeping, look carefully before wearing shoes or gum boots, keep clean around the house, don't sleep on the floor and sleep only with a hammock hanging at night .

Similarly, Prof. Dr. Sharma said that walking on a path with tall grass, feeling the urge to put one's hand into the grass, biting the snake-bitten part, and sucking it can cause more problems. He said, "If a snakebite is tied tightly to a specific organ, that organ may also rot." Without doing so, the patient should be taken to the hospital as soon as possible.' He said that children should be especially careful as snake venom can be absorbed quickly and in some cases they die due to suffocation.

First aid for snakebite

When a person is bitten by a snake, the person who is nearby or the person who has been bitten can also give first aid. According to the Director of EDCD, Dr.Yaduchandra Ghimire, not to move the bitten hand or foot is an effective way. The person who has been bitten should be kept comfortably lying down. Don't let the bitten hands and feet move even if you are wearing black. The victim should be taken to the nearest snakebite treatment center immediately. If you use a motorcycle, you can reach it quickly. He said that the patient should be comforted because too much fear also leads to death.

What to do in an emergency?

According to Dr. Ghimire, director of EDCD, in case of emergency, the patient should be kept straight and the bitten part should not be moved. People who have been bitten by a snake should loosen their clothes and jewelry to see if they are tight.

Don't move around the snake bite and use home remedies as much as possible . Do not cut, burn, or suck around a snake bite wound. Before the treatment, the person designated by the snake should not be fed anything. He said that he should be requested to remain calm and not to panic.

According to him, dead snakes should not be touched and handled. Sometimes snakes that are thought to be dead can also bite. As far as possible, if you can take a photo of the biting snake and show it to the doctor, the doctor can identify whether the snake is poisonous or not and help in giving the right treatment. "The person bitten by the snake should be taken to the anti-venom center as soon as possible," he said.

Snakebite treatment takes place in these places

There are more than 118 snakebite treatment centers across the country. Most of them are in Terai region. According to EDCD, 15 more treatment centers have recently been added including District Hospital Baitadi, Rukum East Hospital Rukumkot, Manthali Hospital in Ramechhap, Kawasoti Hospital in Nawalparasi, Infection and Infectious Disease Hospital Kaski, Swargaddhari Municipality Pyuthan, Reugha Village in Rolpa, Barbardia Municipality-6 Manikapur in Bardia. ;