The epidemiology of snakebite in the Rio Grande do Norte State, Northeastern Brazil

Abstract

This report is a retrospective study of the epidemiology of snakebite cases recorded from 2007 to 2014 in the Rio Grande do Norte State, northeastern Brazil. Data was collected from the Injury Notification Information System database of the Health Department of Rio Grande do Norte. A total of 3,019 cases were studied. Cases were distributed over all months of the period studied and occurred mainly in rural areas. Snakes of the genus Bothrops, Crotalus, Micrurus, Lachesis and non-venomous snakes were responsible for 1,507, 185, 52, 6 and 673 cases, respectively. Snakebites predominated in males with age between 10 and 29 years old. Most victims were bitten on the feet and received medical assistance within 1-3 h after being bitten. Cases were mostly classified as mild and progressed to cure. Envenomation by snakebite in Rio Grande do Norte is an environmental public health problem that needs to be monitored and controlled throughout the year. Additionally, the training of health professionals is urgent in order to improve the registration of epidemiological information and medical care to victims.

Long-term sequelae secondary to snakebite envenoming: a single centre retrospective study in a Costa Rican paediatric hospital

“… 3 13 In our study, when analysing the factors associated with the development of sequelae, no significant differences between both groups of patients were observed regarding age, gender, anatomical site of the bite, severity of envenoming, time to reach the hospital and to receive the first dose of antivenom, and local clinical manifestations of envenoming. Thus, despite the fact that previous literature has related late medical care with a higher risk of complications, including lethality, 11 no significant association between time to reach treatment and incidence of sequelae was observed in our study.…”

Epidemiology of accidents involving venomous animals in the State of Ceará, Brazil (2007-2019)

“…Previous epidemiological studies have confirmed the influence of human and environmental factors on the occurrences of incidents involving venomous animals in Northeast Brazil 17 , especially in the rainiest months 15,16,18 , corroborating our data. In our study, women were more vulnerable, and these results are in line with those of other epidemiological studies involving incidents caused by venomous animals in Brazil 19 and in the Northeast region 15,17,[20][21][22] . The predominance of men usually reveals their greater exposure to areas where there are risks of snakebites, and this is especially true for those performing manual civilian work, such as agricultural workers 15 .…”

Epidemiology of envenomation by Africanized honeybees in the state of Rio Grande do Norte, Northeastern Brazil

“…These data are in agreement with those provided by the Brazilian Ministry of Health (n = 2,191). This small difference in the number of cases has been reported in epidemiological studies with venomous animals 7,8,12 . This finding may be due to possible failures in filling the record forms and data processing between the health departments of the cities, the state, and, finally, the Ministry of Health.…”

“…Natal is the capital of the state and has the highest number of inhabitants of the state. The cities were grouped into four regions: Oeste Potiguar, Central Potiguar, Agreste Potiguar, and Leste Potiguar 7,8 . Estimates indicate that Rio Grande do Norte has 3,168,027 inhabitants, with about 77.8% of the population living in urban areas and 22.2% in rural areas.…”