THE JHARKHAND STORY NETWORK
Daltonganj, July 5: A piquant situation arose last evening at the emergency room of the MMCH Daltonganj when a man rushed in there carrying a live snake in a water bottle in one hand and with the other hand supporting his snake-bitten wife for treatment.
The couple identified as Kamlesh Yadav and his wife Bimla Devi had come from Untari Road block limits where a snake had bitten the right-hand finger of Bimla Devi while she was working on her ‘moong’ pulse field.
Snake-bitten woman did well not to go to ‘jharphook wala’
Dr R K Ranjan of the MMCH told this correspondent, “The couple acted wise when they came to the government hospital instead of wasting precious time on visiting a jhar phook wala.”
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However, Dr R K Ranjan said, “The man ought not to have brought with him the live snake in a water bottle. I understand he brought it to show the doctor the species of the snake that had bitten his wife. Yadav must have desired to know from the doctor if the snake was poisonous or a non-poisonous one.”
Doctors rely on post-snake bite signs
Dr Ranjan said doctors decide the snake bite victim to be a case of poisonous biting or non-poisonous biting based on the signs and symptoms emerging from the episode and not generally by the skin, colour or tail of the snake. He said identification of the snake matters most as it eases the course of treatment but it’s the signs and symptoms of the post snake bite episode that the doctors rely on most.
Dr Ranjan said, “We as doctors discourage such practice of bringing in live snake in the hospital. It is hazardous. One is never sure what will happen if the brought-in snake slithers outside.”
It is safe to bring snake-bite victim within 2 hours
The snake bite victim is under constant medical observation added Dr Ranjan. He said a snake bite victim if brought to the hospital within two hours of the episode of being bitten by a snake stands a 99 percent chance of retaining life.
Civil Surgeon Dr Anil Kumar said the snake bite victim had no sign of ptosis. Ptosis is a major symptom where eyelids droop in snake bite cases besides other symptoms.
