Parents Not Aware of Snake Treatment

[CharlieJ]

Parents Not Aware of Snake Treatment
Source: BorderMail.com (AU)
TWO out of three children bitten by snakes get the wrong first aid or none at all, a study has found. The Western Australian research shows the number of children getting the correct on-the-spot care for bites has been up to 10 per cent less in the past decade than it was in the 1980s.
“This is a tragedy,” said Dr. Noel Eatough, a registrar who reviewed the medical records of children admitted to Perth’s Princess Margaret Hospital between 1994 and 2004.
He found only 33 per cent of the 151 children had had the best treatment, a pressure immobilisation bandage on the limb with the right pressure to limit the spread of venom. The remaining 67 per cent had mostly had no first aid or the bandage had been wrapped too tightly, meaning it had to be released after a short time.
A comparison with an earlier study from 1984 to 1993 at the same hospital found that use of the effective bandaging style had slipped by between five and 10 per cent.
Dr. Eatough said he was disappointed that parents were not aware of the bandaging, developed by scientist Struan Sutherland in the 1970s. “It saves lives, so it is something all parents should be aware of,” he said.
His colleague Dr. Meredith Borland said the results indicated poor knowledge nationwide of how best to treat bites. “Clearly this is something we have to promote to the public, especially when we do have a lot of snakes,” Dr. Borland said.

[BWSmith]

It is important to note that this article is from Austrailia and the Pressure Immobilization Bandage is used for neurotoxic snakes. It should not generally be used for pitvipers like we have in North America.

	neurotoxin Neurotoxin is a toxin that acts specifically on nerve cells – neurons – usually by interacting with membrane proteins and ion channels.