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Firstly, snakes aren't Poisonous, they're Venomous - Venom is just protein - one could take a glass of venom and, provided he / she has no cavities in their teeth and no ulcers in their mouth or stomach, could drink it with no consequences!There are three main classes of snake venom: -

1. Myo-cytotoxic, (Puff Adder, Gaboon Viper, Horned Adder, Pit Viper) - these snakes have hinged fangs and their venom causes massive swelling and tissue damage.

2. Neurotoxic, (Cobras, Mambas, Berg Adder, Sea Snake, Rinkhals) - These snakes are front fanged and cause respiratory and cardiac arrest.

3. Haemotoxic - (Boomslang, Vine Snake) - these snakes are back fanged and their venom dissolves the platelets in their victim's blood causing massive hemorrhaging.

If someone is bitten, don't try and catch the snake, you might be bitten as well! Call Emergency Services and Sit the patient down under a tree and wash the bite site and surrounding skin, (often the snake will deliver a Dry Bite - no injection of venom).Remove any jewelery like rings and watches because there is going to be swelling.If a first aid kit is available, grab the bandage that is used for sports injuries - the Crape Bandage. *Wrap the extremity from Distal to Proximal and then make sure there is a Distal Pulse - this will tell you if the dressing is too tight or not.*The reason for this treatment is to try and spread the venom around the entire limb - {the body will always flush an injury site with fluid, by spreading the venom the body flushes the entire limb with fluid and therefore Diluting the venom and giving you more time to get the patient to Medical assistance}.
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14y ago

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