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 (Reuters Health) - Most snakebites are not the result of humans
confronting the snake, a new study suggests.
Instead, most victims are unaware of the snakes before they are
bitten, according to an analysis of snakebite reports in the media
between 2011 and 2013.
The researchers set out to investigate the common perception that
most snakebites are “illegitimate,” resulting from trying to move or
kill an animal rather than leave it alone.
“The ‘common knowledge’ perception has been that most bites are
illegitimate (and I know I've seen plenty of people do stupid things
with snakes that would reinforce that idea),” said lead author
Dennis K. Wasko of Hillyer College at the University of Hartford in
Connecticut.
“On the other hand, you have to consider the source: pop-media vs.
clinical reports,” Wasko told Reuters Health by email. “Clinical
records don't often tell you exactly how the bite happened in the
first place at all, so there was little actual data.”
The researchers used daily Google searches to assess media reports
of snakebites in the U.S. between 2011 and 2013, which included 332
snakebites. In most cases, the snakes were in the wild rather than
in captivity.
Most victims were adult men, and most of the snakes were
rattlesnakes or copperheads. Ten snakebites were fatal, six in the
wild and four in captivity.
Almost 70 percent of bites were “legitimate,” an accidental exposure
from stepping on an unseen snake or placing a hand near one during
activities like hiking or gardening. Thirty percent came from
deliberately handling or manipulating a snake.
Legitimate bites often happened to the lower extremities while
illegitimate bites happened to the hands or fingers, as reported in
Wilderness & Environmental Medicine.
Media coverage of snakebites relies on the victim’s report of the
story, however, Wasko noted.
“Media stories have a ton of potential biases, and rely heavily on
self-reporting by the victim... would you be more likely to tell the
news if you accidentally stepped on a snake, or if you'd knowingly
started poking it with a stick?” he said.
Bites resulting from deliberate or stupid actions make for better
stories, so may more often be reported, he said.
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“‘A woman walking to her garden shed stepped on a snake but was not
seriously hurt’ is not a terribly exciting story,” he said. “The kid
in Oregon who was bitten on the tongue after sticking a rattlesnake
in his mouth? That was a doozy.”
There are thousands of bites annually in the U.S., and in this
study, one third were preventable, Wasko said.
“That's a huge number of incidents that can be avoided by simply
leaving snakes alone,” he said.
Men suffered more preventable bites than women, trying to catch,
kill, or play with snakes, he said. “Speaking as a man, I don't
think anyone finds this surprising.”
Globally, snakebites are an occupational hazard for those working in
agriculture, mostly young adult males, said Janaka de Silva of the
University of Kelaniya in Sri Lanka, who was not part of the U.S.
study.
“Mechanized farming may reduce bites overall in the future,” de
Silva said.
“Snakes really only bite people as a last resort; they're more than
happy to leave you alone if you pay them the same courtesy,” Wasko
said.
If you encounter a snake in the wild, “take a picture from a safe
distance!” Wasko said. “Learn what kind it is, where they go and
what they do. Show your friends, teach your kids wonder,
appreciation, and respect for the natural world. Learn about some of
the amazing, misunderstood creatures you share the world with.”
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/1rh9hoM Wilderness and Environmental Medicine,
online May 5, 2016.
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