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The viper's bite is ordinary: what to do, how to avoid?

 
, medical expert
Last reviewed: 18.10.2021
 
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Viper is one of those snakes that bite only as a last resort, if necessary protection and self-defense. The snake never attacks the first. Therefore, in order to avoid a bite, you must be extremely careful and watch out so as not to disturb the snake in any way. Especially neat should be in the morning, at dawn, because at this time the snakes usually go out to the sun to bask. Often snakes live in peat bedding, in loosened ground, under damp leaves in the forest, in open glades. Some snakes hide in grasses, thickets. It is necessary to go through thickets very carefully.

The risk of being bitten by a viper increases in the spring, especially in late April, early May. During this period, snakes are usually activated, they have offspring, they wake up after hibernation. Sun rays warm the earth, and snakes quite often creep out onto open terrain, like to sit on stones. You should be cautious when visiting cave, forest gorges, nor holes. An adder can come across a haystack, under abandoned building materials, in old, loose buildings. Water is also a danger, as snakes can swim. Especially dangerous are water bodies with a lot of thickets, reeds.

Mostly an adder lives in the middle zone of Russia.

To recognize a snake in appearance is simple enough: it has a zigzag shape and a gray color. Also along the body of the snake is a dark strip. Most often it has ragged, crooked edges, but rarely even a flat edge. Primarily vipers are gray, but black is also.

Epidemiology

According to statistics, with proper first aid, therapy has a positive outcome. If the first aid is not provided, a fatal outcome will occur. If no first aid was given, within only 2-3 hours, only 13% of people could survive. If the first aid is provided in a timely manner, there is a possibility to recover fairly quickly, and the bite can pass without serious consequences.

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Causes of the bite of an ordinary viper

Vipers are cold-blooded, so they show activity during the day. Mostly they go out on warm, sunny days. At night they show activity only if the air temperature is rather high. At night, snakes can crawl to the fire.

It is necessary to know that the snake always attacks only after a preliminary warning: it usually hisses, takes a curved pose - a pose of threat, intimidation, then makes several improvised shots forward. If you do not leave such a snake, she will have to rush. Do not touch the snake, approach it, nor do you have to make sudden movements, as this can scare the snake, and make it attack in self-defense.

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Symptoms of the bite of an ordinary viper

When bitten, a person, as a rule, feels a lot of pain. This is due to the fact that the snake bites the skin, and also injects poison into the wound site, which then spreads through the body, the pain progresses constantly, it grows. First, a local reaction develops, which is accompanied by itching, burning, swelling, irritation. The skin at the bite site blushes. After some time passes, a systemic reaction develops, that is, inflammation and redness spreads, a toxin from the snake bite penetrates deep into the body.

It should be borne in mind that the poison shows a high tropism to the nervous tissue, so it is affected in the first place. In this regard, the most dangerous is the bite in the head, neck. The least dangerous is the bite in the legs, arms. But this does not mean that you do not need to provide first aid. On the contrary, it is necessary to suck off the poison as soon as possible, neutralize it, carry out an antitoxic quality.

Cytokines, which are contained in the immune system, lead to the development of the inflammatory process in the blood, as well as the blood coagulation system is disrupted. The process is accompanied by a strong pain syndrome. If you do not provide first aid and do not follow-up treatment, swelling will only increase. The most severe stage is the necrosis of the affected tissue.

Intoxication, as a rule, is accompanied by a strong intoxication process, during which the inflammatory process develops, signs of typical poisoning appear: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea. Also, the process is accompanied by shortness of breath, palpitations.

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Treatment of the bite of an ordinary viper

The essence of first aid with a snake bite is that it is necessary to eliminate the poison from the body. In the first hours after the bite, you need to suck the poison out as soon as possible. This is especially true in the conditions of the campaign, if there is no medical institution nearby. Often people ask the question: can it be poisoned by the poison that gets into the mouth during suction. Here you can immediately reassure the one who provides first aid: the poison when ingested is not dangerous, because it only causes poisoning if it gets into the blood. A distinctive feature is the defeat of the blood coagulation system.

If a snake bites, first of all there is urgent help on the spot. Then it is necessary, as soon as possible to deliver the victim to the hospital. Statistics show convincingly that in most cases, bite itself is not so dangerous, how dangerous are the wrong actions after a bite.

So, the order of actions has approximately the following form:

  1. The poison must be sucked through the hole that remains after the bite.
  2. Immediately call an ambulance.
  3. If you have to transport the victim, it is necessary that the bitten part of the body is immobilized. In no case can the damaged part of the body be performed by any movements, since the movement will promote accelerated absorption, and will also help to ensure that the poison spreads faster throughout the body.
  4. With a tendency to allergic reactions, with the development of inflammation, severe redness, it is necessary to drink an antiallergic or antihistamine. In campaigns antiallergic drugs should be with you without fail.
  5. It is necessary to drink as much liquid as possible, since the drink helps to accelerate the removal of toxins from the body, reduces intoxication, inflammatory processes. You need to drink a lot, but in small portions. You need to drink at least 3 liters of fluid a day. It is best to drink pure drinking water, but juice is also suitable. Of the juices, apple juice, citrus juice, pomegranate juice proved to be very good.

Allow the doctor to provide the necessary assistance. Do not self-medicate, because it can only harm the body. The only thing you can do is suck the poison, give anti-allergic, ensure the immobility of the limb, and deliver the victim as soon as possible to the medical institution, no more actions should be taken. Of antiallergic, a well-proven suprastin, tavegil, loratadine. Suffering bronchial asthma, you need to apply the drug that is constantly applied.

Also, you need to remember a series of activities that should not be done with a snake bite.

  1. You can not take alcohol.
  2. You can not treat the wound surface, in particular, drip there peroxide, iodine, zelenok, alcohol, or any other means.
  3. Cauterizing the place of bite is impossible.
  4. Do not wash the bite site with potassium permanganate, or any other substances, especially if it is a chemical.
  5. Do not apply a hard tourniquet and pinch the affected area. The tourniquet does not stop the absorption of poison, but only worsens the circulation.
  6. Do not self-medicate. We need a full-fledged antitoxic therapy, in which neutralization of the poison takes place. Folk, homeopathic remedies not only do not have a positive impact, they can even aggravate the situation.
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