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Re: [RC] snakebites-longish - Jackie WinklemanThere was a man that came to my workplace to give a demonstration/talk about poisonous snakes in the SE. I believe his name is Maynard Cox. I think he is very well known as the 'snake man.' I don't know if he has anything on the web or not, but he was a very interesting person. I think he's from Orange Park, FL... Jackie --- David & Maggie <maggieszoo@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: As far as antivenom goes, doctors don't use it unless they feel that the patient's life is in danger (the bite was on the face or the patient is allergic) because it often causes worse symptoms than the bite itself, often anaphylaxis. Not to mention that hospitals often only have one dose on hand. It is needed so infrequently that it expires before it gets used. As far as bites that don't cause problems, only 1 in 4 bites injects venom. Several factors come into play here. If the snake was planning ahead to bite you (ie mistook your foot for something yummy) there will be venom. If the snake is younger there will be venom because he doesn't know that he can't eat you so he tries to kill you. An old snake knows that you are too big to eat, so he just wants to scare you off. If the snake just finished hunting and injected several small animals, there may not be venom left to inject you or your horse. Now for some interesting statistics: and sorry folks, I don't remember the source, only that it was in a lecture by a very knowledgeable physician that collects this type of data. Most poisonous snakebites: -occur in men -occur with alcohol involved -are not the first bite for the person -occur in the south I will not comment on the above for fear of offending some southern, beer-drinking gentleman that has been bitten more than once. Ride safely, and remember that the odds are on your side. I got bitten by a copperhead once, with just a tiny open area on the ankle. Didn't even get sick. And no, I did not shock myself. Maggie Herlensky RN, EMT-P, SARMR __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! SiteBuilder - Free, easy-to-use web site design software http://sitebuilder.yahoo.com =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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