Facts: This is what you do if someone gets bitten by a snake
When someone is bitten by a snake, you should:
+ Call 112
+ Calm the one who has been bitten.
+ Let the person rest and keep the bitten body part still.
+ Take rings, shoes, bracelets and similar items and garments as local swelling may be pronounced.
+ Leave the bite site alone.
Source: The Medical Products Agency
“Reactions can come quickly and be life-threatening so it is not possible to stay at home and wait for symptoms. The first hours are most critical. Keep the exposed body part still, to reduce the risk of the poison spreading quickly in the body,” says Peter Hultén at the Poison Information Center in a press release.
If you are unsure if it is a viper bite, you should call 112 and request poison information.
A common sign that a viper has bitten and injected venom are two small punctures in the skin and that it swells around the bite.
Every year, up to 400 people are cared for in hospital for adder bites, according to the Medical Products Agency. Half of them need antidote treatment.
Anyone who is bitten by vipers is taken to hospital for observation. Deaths are very rare.
Common symptoms range from dizziness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain to difficulty breathing, drop in blood pressure and decreased consciousness.
Last year, the Poison Information Center received 838 calls about vipers. It can be compared with the hot year 2018, when 1,225 calls came in to the exchange – which was a record number.