The pattern of animal bites in a tertiary hospital of west India

Abstract

The animal bite is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide and the prevalence is high in India. The present study was undertaken with the aim to analyze the pattern of animal bites in a tertiary hospital of west India and to provide a valuable piece of information to reduce the incidence. This prospective cross-sectional study was conducted in the forensic medicine department of a tertiary hospital of Gujarat in India. The prevalence of animal bites in our study was higher (4.9%) and the majority of the victims were Hindu males belonging to the younger age group of 21–40 years. The snake bite (40.75%) was the leading cause of animal bite, followed by the cases of unknown animal bite (36.23%), scorpion bite (10.94%) and insect bite (5.65%). The outcome of animal bite cases in the hospital during treatment shows that almost half (49.43%) of the cases of animal bites were discharged after successful treatment. This study provides relevant information and data about the animal bites and associated risk factors in the western part of India, which can be used for the prevention and control of the animal bites.