Snake bite compression bandage.

[Tipi Walter]

Not looking down first while jumping from a big log on the shore of Fontana lake very nearly got me bitten once. The healthy 4 foot timber rattler I almost stepped on was not at all amused.

Same thing happened to me climbing up the South Fork trail in the Citico "bewilderness". I put up my tent and hiked around camp over a couple blowdowns and saw Big Jimmy relaxing and contemplating the day. (No relation to Jimmy as above). We both exchanged trekking information and compared our trip schedules etc.

[Don H]

From the Maryland EMT, Wilderness EMS Protocols:
X. Snake Bites

1. 1. There are two wild snakes indigenous to the State of Maryland that are poisonous:
   
   
   1. a) Northern Copperhead – The Northern Copperhead is identi ed by the coppery color to its head and the alternating tan and dark brown on its body. It likes to hide within woodpiles or under logs.
      
   2. b) Timber Rattlesnake – The Timber Rattlesnake is a large, stout bodied snake that can grow up to 5 feet or more. It is typically identi ed by bands of dark chevrons on its back. Generally the snake likes to live in wooded areas but gravid females may be found sunning on open rocks.
      
   
   
2. 2. Snake bites may or may not present with paired fang puncture wounds. A snake bite may also present with a single puncture wound or just a scratch.
   
3. 3. The greater majority of bites will present with immediate onset of pain at the site of the bite. The bite will become swollen and erythematous.
   
4. 4. Mark the site of erythema and monitor its progression.
   
5. 5. Treatment
   
   
   1. a) Gently clean the area and cover with a sterile dressing.
      
   2. b) Do NOT attempt to suck out the venom with a commercial or improvised device.
      
   3. c) Do not apply a distal and proximal constricting band for poisonous snakebite
      to an extremity. Splint the extremity. Remove any jewelry on affected extremity.
      
   4. d) As much as possible keep the affected area below the level of the heart.
      
   5. e) Unless absolutely necessary, the patient should be carried out rather than
      walked out on their own accord.
      
   6. f) Calmly expedite transport out of the wilderness.
      
   
   
6. 6. Do NOT try to catch the snake for identification purposes.
   

[Siestita]

Allergic reactions to stings from bees or wasps apparently are more common threats to human life here in the Eastern USA than are venomous snakes.

Finding the advise presented below useful, my first aid supplies always include the anti-histamine Benedyrl or its generic equivalent.


http://www.backpacker.com/gear/exper...or-snakebites/

[Moosling]

Stay alert and do what you can to avoid being bitten, especially avoiding messing with the snake, which is how most bites happen. But if bitten, remain calm and try to keep the bitten extremity below the level of your heart. Staying still is best (if rescue is on the way), but if you must self evacuate, move at a moderate pace and keep your heart rate as low as possible.

Bravo Engine glad you made the point of moving moderately if you need to move at all....Don't be a hero folks call for some help.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[RangerZ]

Compared to Australian snakes, the few poisonous snakes in the Appalachians are pretty negligible. They're not very aggressive, and they're not very poisonous.

Copperheads

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agkistrodon_contortrix

Timber rattlers

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crotalus_horridus

Your snakes from home would not be impressed by either of them.

For reference look at "Poisonous Insects and Snakes of Australia", volumes 1-10. 🐍🕷

[blw2]

and that's exactly why I ask. I remember the exactlo blade and little suction cup, "The Extrator" years later, and a whole bunch of torn bed sheets, mud packs, tea leaves & tobacco in between.

I remember reading a new idea about 25 years ago maybe, that was apparently showing promise in some "studies". I can't rember where.... some outdoor or hunting sports magazine probably... It had to do with high voltage low current electroshock applied to the bite site..... (i.e. stun gun or an engine ignition coil shock). Haven't seen any mention of it since so I guess it never caught on

[Traveler]

I remember reading a new idea about 25 years ago maybe, that was apparently showing promise in some "studies". I can't rember where.... some outdoor or hunting sports magazine probably... It had to do with high voltage low current electroshock applied to the bite site..... (i.e. stun gun or an engine ignition coil shock). Haven't seen any mention of it since so I guess it never caught on

Cletus, hol' muh beer 'n watch this.....

[jjozgrunt]

For reference look at "Poisonous Insects and Snakes of Australia", volumes 1-10. 

I see you have only got the smaller travel volumes. For the complete list you need this volume.
f_b1d7a3b094.jpg

[Sarcasm the elf]

I see you have only got the smaller travel volumes. For the complete list you need this volume.
f_b1d7a3b094.jpg

image.jpeg

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[Obiwan]

Not AT related exactly, but I have never seen instructions on what to do if you are a LOONG way from civilization. Hope for the best???

[rocketsocks]

I remember reading a new idea about 25 years ago maybe, that was apparently showing promise in some "studies". I can't rember where.... some outdoor or hunting sports magazine probably... It had to do with high voltage low current electroshock applied to the bite site..... (i.e. stun gun or an engine ignition coil shock). Haven't seen any mention of it since so I guess it never caught on

I've never heard of that one, interesting, though I don't mind saying I'd have a hard time shocking the dog outta myself after having been bit and in pain.

[jjozgrunt]

Not AT related exactly, but I have never seen instructions on what to do if you are a LOONG way from civilization. Hope for the best???

If you have no comms, no PLB and on a less well used track, put your head between your legs and well you know the rest. Just joking, a lot would depend on where you were bitten, type of snake, type of poison, do you have any treatment options, how healthy you are etc etc. One would hope that if you plan a hike, a long way from civilization, one of the first things on the gear list is a PLB.

[dzierzak]

I remember reading a new idea about 25 years ago maybe, that was apparently showing promise in some "studies". I can't rember where.... some outdoor or hunting sports magazine probably... It had to do with high voltage low current electroshock applied to the bite site..... (i.e. stun gun or an engine ignition coil shock). Haven't seen any mention of it since so I guess it never caught on

Short answer - it doesn't work.
Wilderness Environ Med. 2001 Summer;12(2):111-7.
Use of stun guns for venomous bites and stings: a review.

Ben Welch E¹, Gales BJ.
Abstract

During the past 2 decades, articles suggesting that stun guns be utilized to treat venomous bites and stings have appeared in both the lay and medical press. Although never widely considered to be standard therapy for venomous bites and stings, stun guns are still considered to be a treatment option by some medical practitioners and outdoor enthusiasts. A Medline search was performed using these terms: venomous bites, venomous stings, snake bites, spider bites, electrical, stun gun, high voltage electricity, low amperage electricity, direct current, and shock therapy. Articles selected included laboratory-based isolated venom studies, animal studies, and case reports involving humans in which a stun gun or some other source of high voltage, low amperage direct current electric shocks were used to treat actual or simulated venomous bites or stings. We concluded that the use of stun guns or other sources of high voltage, low amperage direct current electric shocks to treat venomous bites and stings is not supported by the literature.


PMID: 11434486

[rocketsocks]

One time, at band camp, me and my buddy were out hiking and he got bit on the pee pee, so I ran back to get the doctor and the doctor said you have to suck all the poison outta the wound. When I got back to my buddy he said "whud he say, whud he say"? The doctor said you are going to die!