This type of bandage should be tightly wrapped around the bite. If you experience any of the following symptoms, you should contact your healthcare provider or doctor to ask about serum sickness disease: A snake bite can cause people to panic and act irrationally. All species can, however, bite unexpectedly if they are startled or excessively hungry. Snake Bites. According to the CDC, about 8,000 snakebites happen in the U.S. each year. Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases. This is most effective if given within 4 hours of a snake bite. A non-poisonous snake bite will leave small horseshoe-shaped teeth marks. If any doubt exists about the nature of a snake bite - whether it was from a venomous or non-venomous snake - medical attention should be sought as soon as possible. “Non-poisonous snakes, like the garter snake, don’t have fangs. Their blood serum (the watery part of the blood) is then processed, as it will contain antibodies capable of neutralizing the effects of venom. Cleaning the Bite Wound. Try to get the victim of the bite antivenom as quick as possible. For your safety, treat all snakebites as if they were venomous and get to a hospital emergency room as quickly as possible. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. In general, most non-venomous snake species commonly kept as pets are gentle and do not typically bite their owners if they are unprovoked. PLos One. Treating a Venomous Snake Bite Call emergency services or shout out for help. ; All venomous snakes in North America are either pit vipers or coral snakes. In these cases, even a small amount of venom will be toxic enough to cause more serious symptoms, such as fever and further discoloration of the skin from necrosis (tissue decay). Interviewer: Wash it out and just watch it, at that point. Dr. Madsen: Yeah, wash it out. It’s estimated that at least 81,000 to 138,000 people die each year from snake bites. Washing the wound with soap and water and holding the limb still is recommended. Then, wrap another bandage around the entire limb, so that it’s immobilized. Rattlesnakes are easily identifiable. There are antivenoms that treat bites from a specific type of snake (monospecific antivenoms) and also those that treat bites from a number of snakes found in a particular geographic region (polyspecific antivenoms). They have rings at the end of … While either of these methods may produce side effects, they’ve proven to be the most effective. How to Treat a Non-Venomous Snake Bite. State of Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. Consequently, these snake bites can rarely penetrate the clothing a person is wearing, unlike the fangs of venomous snakes that are designed to penetrate the often thick skin of their prey. When no envenomization occurs, or if the bite is inflicted by a non-venomous snake, the bite should be treated as a puncture wound. While these are all useful precautionary measures, the ultimate treatment for a snake bite is antivenom. If your blood pressure dips below a certain level, you may need IV fluids (through a needle in the arm). Once the bleeding is stopped, wash and rinse the wound with soap and water. This is because venom is actually a form of saliva that is produced by nearly all members of the snake genus. The amount of time it takes to completely recover depends on the kind of snake bite. Believe it or not, the sharpness of the teeth is a good thing. While the highly-venomous snakes, such as rattlesnakes and vipers, have two very long and flexible fangs, non-venomous snakes have several small teeth as a rule. Treatment for snake bites on dogs is really dependent on the type of snake bite. If you are bitten by a snake (venomous or non-venomous) while out in the wilderness, what can be an already stressful and fear-inducing experience is complicated significantly by your distance from medical resources. They can deliver venom and cause anyone a very bad day if they are bitten. Treating a Non-Poisonous Snake Bite If the snake is non-poisonous, the best thing to do is treat it as a puncture wound. This will be sometimes true for very young children and elderly people whose immune systems are less effective than healthy adults. Knowing the size, color and shape of the snake can help your doctor determine which antivenom is best for that particular situation. One of those side effects is serum sickness disease, which can appear four to 10 days after receiving the antivenom. NEVER handle a venomous snake, not even a dead one or its decapitated head. Infections: Snake bite from non-poisonous snake, like any other animal bite, may introduce microbes at the site of the bite that may cause disseminated infection, ... Read More 2 doctors agree Learn About Surgical Procedures Used to Treat Medical Conditions, Choking Infant Guidelines and Tips on How to Prevent Choking, First Aid Kit Contents for a Basic Emergency First Aid Kit, Learn Basic First Aid Tips to Protect Your Loved Ones in an Emergency, Travel First Aid Kits for Basic Emergency Medical Care, Learn Basic First Aid Instructions to Provide Immediate Treatment for Common Wounds and Injuries, How to do CPR: Infant, Child and Adult CPR, Learn How to do the Heimlich Maneuver on Children & Adults. This means call 911 or emergency services as soon as you can, because even if the bite isn’t that painful initially, you still need to treat it as if it’s potentially life-threatening. Cleveland Clinic Children's is dedicated to the medical, surgical and rehabilitative care of infants, children and adolescents. A visit to an emergency room - or to a doctor’s office or clinic that can provide immediate assistance - would be the best way to address a snake bite that presents serious symptoms. Because of the lower levels of toxicity evident in non-venomous snakes, first aid for non-venomous snake bite can be addressed in the home environment. About 7,000–8,000 people get venomous snake bites in the U.S. each year, but only five of them die as a result. “Venomous Bites from Non-Venomous Snakes: A Critical Analysis of Risk and Management of “Colubrid Snake Bites (Elsevier Insights) - Kindle edition by Weinstein, Scott A, Warrell, David A., White, Julian, Keyler, Daniel E. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. A bite from a snake (or any strange animal, for that matter) can deposit bacteria under your skin. Most of these occur in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Most, but not all, poisonous snake bites need this treatment. The treatment of non-venomous snake bites includes local wound care at the site of the bite, removing snake teeth if left in the bite site, attending to any trauma at the bite site, and a tetanus booster if needed. In these cases, an immediate and thorough cleaning of the area with soap and water, followed by an application of hydrogen peroxide, will most likely be all that is required. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Once the injury is identified as a non-poisonous Snake bite, rinse it with clean water and seek medical help. Even so, there are certain things you should avoid doing immediately following a snake bite, including: In most cases, you’ll need to stay in the hospital for at least 24 hours, so that doctors can monitor your blood pressure and overall health. A short cut review was carried out to establish whether prophylactic antibiotics reduced the incidence of infection after non-venemous snake bite. First Aid. Throughout the world, it is estimated there are a minimum of 1 to 2 million annual snakebite incidents (this number includes bites by non-venomous species).Of that number, roughly 50,000 to 100,000 bites result in fatalities worldwide. Any lingering pain can be treated with acetaminophen, either in an oral tablet or in a cream or other topical form. If the bite caused a larger-than-normal loss of blood, a blood transfusion may be necessary. Learn more about what to do if your pet snake bites you, and how to prevent it from happening again here. Hifumi T, Sakai A, Kondo Y, Yamamoto A, Morine N, Ato M, et al. 2020; 15(3). Try to remember its color and shape so that you can describe it, which will help in your treatment. Remain still and calm. How to Prevent or Respond to a Snake Bite. Fun fact: Antivenoms are created by immunizing horses or sheep with the venom of a particular snake. Letter to the Editor: Snakebite envenomation turns again into a neglected tropical disease. Knowing the size, color and shape of the snake can help your doctor determine which antivenom is best for that particular situation. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. 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