Doctors said in a report that over the past 11 years they have seen and treated 300 victims, including 72 teenagers or children. Most made a full recovery, but some had to be hospitalized in intensive care, one patient had part of his finger amputated, and another man died from the bite. The man who died was a reptile conservationist and had been bitten by a king cobra – the world’s longest venomous snake, the report said. According to eyewitnesses, after being bitten, the man staggered about “like a drunk” and then collapsed. Snake venom is a neurotoxin that can stop a person’s breathing and heartbeat. He died of cardiac arrest despite being given 10 vials of antidote by emergency services. According to doctors in the journal Clinical Toxicology, it is possible that she had an allergic reaction to the antidote. The patient who lost part of his finger kept a snake as a pet and was bitten by the highly venomous Mozambican spitting cobra – considered one of Africa’s most dangerous snakes. Their fangs can spray venom up to 3 meters, with bites potentially fatal. Image: Britain’s only venomous snake, the adder, has enough venom to kill an adult There are over 250 species of venomous snakes, mostly native to Asia, Africa, Latin America and Oceania. But the UK has three native snake species, the adder, grass and smooth snake. Only the adder is poisonous. Although keeping exotic reptiles as pets is not illegal, the RSPCA advises people to research what is involved before buying one. The charity advises people with a pet python not to handle it “after handling prey, as the snake may smell the leg and try to bite”. Image: A patient lost part of his finger after being bitten by a spitting cobra in Mozambique In the study, researchers found 321 snake bites from 68 species between 2009 and 2020, of which 15 resulted in serious symptoms. They say this is an increase over the previous period, between 2004 and 2010. Professor David Warrell from the University of Oxford, said: “Most of these bites occur on fingers, hands and wrists following deliberate handling interaction by people handling snakes as part of their occupation or hobby.”
