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Mikael · 11-06-2008, 06:31 PM

Poisonous snakes could be killing more than 90,000 people a year around the world, according to latest research.

And scientists fear the current world economic climate could mean there will be a slowdown in the supply of antivenom.

In total, between 1.2 million and 5.5 million snake bites may occur annually, scientists estimate, with India having the biggest snake bite death toll, with around 11,000 lives lost.

Only a quarter of these result in "envenoming", the injection of poison into the blood stream from a snake's fangs.

Snake bites pose an important yet neglected threat to public health, according to the researchers led by Professor Janaka de Silver, from the University of Kelaniya in Sri Lanka.

Globally, at least 421,000 envenomings and 20,000 snake bite deaths occur each year. But researchers believe the figures could be as high as 1,841,000 envenomings and 94,000 deaths.

Southern Asia bore the brunt of the deaths with venomous snakes like cobras and vipers killing 14,000 people each year.

A quarter of all bites occurred in Central and South America, but relatively few resulted in deaths compared with other high incidence areas, researchers found. They said it was probably due to better systems for handling snake bites and the availability of antivenom.

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11-06-2008, 06:31 PM	#1
Mikael Fanatic Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 1,836 Thanks: 828 Thanked 415 Times in 233 Posts	Snake bites kill up to 94,000 people a year Poisonous snakes could be killing more than 90,000 people a year around the world, according to latest research. And scientists fear the current world economic climate could mean there will be a slowdown in the supply of antivenom. In total, between 1.2 million and 5.5 million snake bites may occur annually, scientists estimate, with India having the biggest snake bite death toll, with around 11,000 lives lost. Only a quarter of these result in "envenoming", the injection of poison into the blood stream from a snake's fangs. Snake bites pose an important yet neglected threat to public health, according to the researchers led by Professor Janaka de Silver, from the University of Kelaniya in Sri Lanka. Globally, at least 421,000 envenomings and 20,000 snake bite deaths occur each year. But researchers believe the figures could be as high as 1,841,000 envenomings and 94,000 deaths. Southern Asia bore the brunt of the deaths with venomous snakes like cobras and vipers killing 14,000 people each year. A quarter of all bites occurred in Central and South America, but relatively few resulted in deaths compared with other high incidence areas, researchers found. They said it was probably due to better systems for handling snake bites and the availability of antivenom. Continue reading...

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Snake bites kill up to 94,000 people a year