Confronting the neglected problem of snake bite envneoming: the need for a global partnership

Abstract

Envenoming resulting from snake bites is an important public health hazard in many regions, particularly in tropical and subtropical countries [1–3]. Although antivenoms are being produced by various laboratories in every continent, the burden of snake bite envenoming—causing both morbidity and mortality—still has a great impact on the population and on health-care systems, especially in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and Latin America [4]. Unfortunately, public health authorities, nationally and internationally, have given little attention to this problem, relegating snake bite envenoming to the category of a major neglected disease of the 21st century.