Clinicoepidemiology, clinical profile and outcome of venomous snake bite in children in Konaseema region of Andhra Pradesh, India

Abstract

Background: Venomous snake bite is an acute medical emergency, and children are more quickly and severely affected than adult. Venomous snake bite is responsible for 28.5 deaths per 1000 snake bite death among 5-15years old children. Most of them used to be from rural India and is more common in school going children. But there is no study regarding clinic epidemiology and treatment outcome among pediatric age group in this part of Andhra Pradesh. This retrospective descriptive has been conducted to evaluate the clinic epidemiology, clinical presentation, complication and treatment outcome in snake bite in pediatric patients in our set up.Methods: Present study is a retrospective, descriptive study conducted in the department of paediatrics Konaseema institute of medical science Amalapuram Andhra Pradesh, between 2006 to September 2018. This study protocol is approved by the institutional ethics committee. All the clinical parameters like, age, sex, season of bite, time of bite, socio economic statue, region, site, common clinical presentation, complications, reaction to ASV outcome of treatment were obtained from patient’s case record and was analysed.Results: In present study total 166 snake bite patient case records were evaluated, out of this 166 snake bite cases, 28 bites were by unknown snakes. Demographic profile of patient shows that out of 70 cases, 49 cases were in male child and 21 cases were in female child. Regarding clinical profile of the children with snake bite as mentioned in Table 3, local pain was present in (n=70) 100 % patients. Local blending was presenting symptom in 64.28 %(n=45) patients.Conclusions: From present study authors conclude that snake bite in children is more common among school going children, during monsoon and post monsoon, and in rural area. In our region vasculotoxic snake envanomation is more common and presented with cellulitis which required surgical intervention in most of circumstances. In neurotoxic envenomation some patient developed respiratory paralysis which required ventilatory support.