Snakebite cases are rising at an alarming rate in the Rajshahi region. More than a thousand people bitten by snakes have been treated this year and 38 have died. Russell's viper bites have increased fourfold, and the hospital authorities are setting up a specialised ward for snakebite patients.

According to Rajshahi Medical College (RMC) Hospital, most snakebite admissions each year come between May and November. Up to 30 September this year the hospital admitted 1,167 patients. Of them, 247 had been bitten by venomous snakes and 920 by non-venomous snakes. Thirty-eight patients died.

Last year the hospital admitted 1,370 snakebite patients. The hospital's figures put venomous bites at 314 and patients treated for non-venomous bites at 1,370, with 40 deaths. Most deaths are caused by Russell's viper, krait and cobra bites; Russell's viper alone killed 10 people.

The data show that Russell's viper cases have risen fourfold over eight years. In 2018, 21 people were admitted to RMC after Russell's viper bites. The number rose to 28 in 2019, 35 in 2020 and 37 in 2021, then 31 in 2022, 50 in 2023 and 86 in 2024. Up to September this year, 53 have been admitted. On average, 23 per cent of those bitten by this snake have died.

Because of the rise in attacks, a 12-bed specialised snakebite ward is due to open at the hospital this month, with doctors and nurses on duty round the clock and an adequate supply of antivenom. It is being set up in the extended section of Ward 25 and will be run by Abu Shahin Mohammad Mahbubur Rahman, associate professor in the hospital's medicine department.

He said eight nurses have already been selected for the ward. Its doctors and nurses are being trained according to the national snakebite guidelines and will learn how to manage patients, so snakebite patients get separate care and recover faster.

"Once the specialised ward opens we will be able to provide integrated treatment, which will bring the death rate down considerably," he said. "We can now identify the type of snake, because people kill the snake or recognise it from pictures. That means treatment can start quickly."

Doctors advise people to sleep under a mosquito net at night, wear gumboots when working in the fields, carry a torch and a stick when out, and take care when clearing rubbish.

Amirul Islam, a farmer from Charghat upazila, told Jagonews: "A Russell's viper suddenly bit me while I was working in the paddy field. At first I did not realise it. When my body started to swell I was brought to the hospital. I got treatment quickly here, so I survived."

Rahima Khatun, a housewife from Bagha upazila, said: "A krait got onto the bed and bit me while I was sleeping at night. My family was frightened and brought me to hospital quickly. I am much better now. But two people in our village have died from this snake's bite before."

College student Rajib Hossain said: "I was sitting by the river with friends when a snake suddenly bit my foot. At the hospital they gave me saline and medicine and I recovered. Russell's vipers are often seen in our area. The authorities should look into it."

Half of all the snakebite patients in the country are treated at Rajshahi Medical College Hospital, said its director, Brigadier General FM Shamim Ahmed.

"We have placed orders with the company but are not getting the medicine, so the antivenom shortage continues. We now have to borrow antivenom from here and there," he said.

"As patient numbers are rising we will open a specialised ward here this month. The recovery rate here is very high. We want everyone to go home well. But some patients die because they go to a traditional healer (ojha) or reach hospital late. We are trying to do better," FM Shamim Ahmed added.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.