Too often our favourite screens has put up spectacular scenes of biting into a snake wound and spitting out the venom, wow all well that ends well and we seem not only to buy that sort of snakes on a plane, olive mouth sucking stuff, nonetheless cheer it excessively.
Of course in other scenes this would be followed by some hot juicy celebratory appetiser and a good heroic fight.
Society never advances. It recedes as fast on one side as it gains on the other. Society acquires new arts, and loses old instincts.
Somehow, this is no longer an accepted practice, making such a thing archaic and extremely health and safety wise not to practise. Sucking at a snakebite is not only ineffective but could lead to an infection at the wound site.
We all have enough strength to endure the misfortunes of others.
According to the Red Cross, these steps should be taken after a snakebite:
1. Wash the bite with soap and water.
2. Immobilise the bitten area and keep
it lower than the heart.
3. Get medical help.
Toxicology experts might also suggest applying a tourniquet loosely above the bite to prevent the venom from spreading. A tourniquet is a constricting or compressing device used to control venous and arterial circulation to an extremity for a period of time. Pressure is applied circumferentially upon the skin and underlying tissues of a limb; this pressure is transferred to the walls of vessels, causing them to become temporarily occluded. It is generally used as a tool for a medical professional in applications such as cannulation or to stem the flow of traumatic bleeding, especially by military medics. This must be done with caution, as the tourniquet itself can cause problems if it cuts off the blood flow entirely.
The person then needs to be transported rapidly to an emergency room.
Antivenin is available for a variety of different snakes. Antivenom (or antivenin or antivenene) is a biological product used in the treatment of venomous bites or stings. Antivenom is created by milking venom from the desired snake, spider or insect. The venom is then diluted and injected into a horse, sheep or goat. The subject animal will undergo an immune response to the venom, producing antibodies against the venom's active molecule which can then be harvested from the animal's blood and used to treat envenomation. Internationally, antivenoms must conform to the standards of pharmacopoeia and the World Health Organization (WHO).
Other treatments include antibiotics and surgery.
Of the estimated many different types of snakes found, about a few are poisonous. Dangerously, some species of poisonous snakes, the timber rattlesnake, the massasauga rattlesnake, and the copperhead are not to be taken for a ride. In cities however, most bites occur from snakes that are kept as pets.
Don't ask for a light load, but rather ask for a strong back.
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