Are you seeing any snake-bite patients?

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

I took care of my very first snake-bite patient over the weekend. This individual accidentally stepped on a copperhead snake that had quietly curled up near the front porch and, as a result, got bitten.

I grew up in a coastal city in California where snakes are nonexistent, and I now live in a large city in North Central Texas where rattlesnakes and copperheads infest the outskirts from late March through October.

How often do the rest of you encounter snakes or snake-bite victims during the course of your work or personal lives?

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Specializes in Peri-op/Sub-Acute ANP.

I had a dog that got bitten by a copperhead snake once while we were out for a walk. He went into shock almost immediately and we had to carry him over a mile back to our car (a 90lb German Shepherd) before we could get him to the vet. He recovered after a $500 shot of anti-venom but it was touch and go for the first 24 hours. The tissue around the bite necrotized and he had to have a couple of follow-up procedures to get things all healed up. The vet thought it must have been a baby copperhead that bit him because an adult bite would have killed a dog, especially as it took us a while to get him medical attention. Funny thing is that the dog was on a short leash and we never saw or heard a thing - he just keeled over. I thought he had a heart attack until I saw the blood and realized it was a bite. It could just have easily have been me. Freaked me out.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
funny thing is that the dog was on a short leash and [color=#b22222]we never saw or heard a thing - he just keeled over.
yeah. unlike rattlesnakes, the copperheads are very quiet and can sneakily blend into the outdoor environment without being noticed.

i'm pleased that your dog eventually recovered from the snake bite.

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I took care of one guy who had a really bad reaction to a snakebite and was really sick in the ICU, I don't remember too many details.

My sister did X-ray on a man who had been bitten. The ED doctor pointed to the room the patient was in and asked her to take a leg x-ray of the snake bite patient. Sister walks in and there is a man with a screwdriver sticking out of his leg. She excused herself and asked the doctor if he had the right patient. Yes, the man was bitten by the snake while working outdoors with tools and had stabbed at the snake that bit him and that was why there was a screwdriver in his leg.

I don't know what happened to the snake.

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I'm in the midwest, we see several each summer. We have a snakebite protocol, and we use CroFab. It is VERY expensive, something like 2K a vial, and initial loading dose is 4-6 vials, then additional vials depending upon pts reaction.

CroFab - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Specializes in Trauma, ER, ICU, CCU, PACU, GI, Cardiology, OR.

nope for the simple reason that snakes were out-law here in honolulu long time ago. honolulu hawaii has no snakes except in the honolulu zoo. that being said, we do have a native animal that is called a blind snake but this animal eats small bugs just as ants and termites so is not a threat to the ecosystem. furthermore, this snake was introduced a while ago and has since established itself. having said that, most of the natives tell me that they have lived here all of their life and never seen one. therefore, we don't deal with snake bites :cool:

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