How to provide first aid for bites of snakes and insects?

How to provide first aid for bites of animals, snakes, insects, everyone should know, because it may be needed at any time. This becomes especially relevant in the warm season, when snakes wake up, many different insects appear, such as ticks, spiders, wasps, hornets and others. First aid for snake and insect bites is briefly described in this article.

Bites of domestic and wild animals

If a person is bitten by an animal, it does not matter, domestic or wild, a bitten wound is formed, which is dangerous because there is a risk:

• get tetanus;
• if the animal is sick with rabies, become infected with this disease;
• due to bacteria in the animal’s saliva, infection of the wound can occur.

If a person is bitten by an animal, the first thing to do is:

• stop the bleeding;
• special means to treat the wound;
• apply a sterile dressing to the bite site;
• be sure to contact a medical institution.

Medical care is very important in the case of an animal bite, especially when a wild or stray animal has bitten it. After all, it can be sick with rabies or other diseases. It is less dangerous if the bite was made by a healthy pet, which was vaccinated in advance, and the wound is shallow.

Bites of a bee, hornet, wasp, bumblebee

The poison of these insects contains active substances. They can cause some people to have a severe allergic reaction, which can be quite dangerous.

Symptoms

• a strong pain sensation appears at the site of the bite, the skin at the site of the lesion reddens and swells;
• if there are multiple bites, this can be accompanied by vomiting, the appearance of convulsions, up to the loss of consciousness;
• an allergic reaction often develops.

If a person was bitten by an insect, the following actions must be taken:

• when the sting of an insect remains in the skin, it must be urgently removed, the sting should be captured with tweezers closer to the skin;
• to relieve swelling and swelling, it is recommended to apply something cold to the bite area and hold for 10 minutes;
• lubricate the affected area with antiallergic ointment;
• if the edema at the site of the bite is quite pronounced, and the redness is more than 10 centimeters in diameter, and itching is also present, then an anti-allergic drug of a general effect must be taken;
• with severe itching and increasing redness and swelling, a hormonal anti-inflammatory drug (Prednisone) should be administered.
  

Venomous snake bite

First aid for bites of poisonous snakes and insects should be provided immediately, since the poison, when it enters the bloodstream, spreads throughout the body. It is very dangerous for a person’s health and life when the bite is made by an adder, cobra, muzzle, eph or gyurza. Usually snakes are not the first to rush at people, they can only bite if they are somehow disturbed, for example, hitting, stepping, etc.

The person who was bitten by a snake most often does not know for sure whether it is poisonous or not. Therefore, it is necessary to immediately provide first aid, without waiting until symptoms appear that the poison has begun to act. The person should be immediately sent to a nearby medical facility where he can receive emergency care.

Cobra bite

A very dangerous cobra bite. In the place where the bite occurred, numbness immediately occurs and severe pain is felt. Such symptoms instantly begin to spread throughout the limb, and then throughout the body. The initial collapse develops already in the first 15-20 minutes after the bite has occurred. Then it affects the work of the heart, the lungs swell, and late shock occurs. A person has a staggering gait, which indicates a violation of coordination of movements. Paralysis of the motor muscles of the pharynx, tongue, and oculomotor muscles develops gradually, a hoarse voice, difficulty in swallowing, shallow and rare breathing testify to this. Later other symptoms appear cardiac arrhythmia.

Bite of a viper or muzzle

If the bite was made by a muzzle or viper, poisoning them with poison causes the rapid development of edema of the damaged limb. After 20-40 minutes after a snakebite, the victim shows signs of shock: dizziness begins, nausea appears, the skin becomes pale, the pulse is weak but frequent, blood pressure drops sharply, and loss of consciousness can occur. At the place where the bite was committed, hemorrhage appears, the skin turns blue. Sometimes tissue necrosis occurs. Symptoms of snake venom poisoning become most pronounced at the end of the first day.

Giving help

First aid for bites of snakes, insects, ticks should be provided immediately after the incident. If one of the poisonous snakes has bitten, it is recommended to do the following:

• Place the victim in a horizontal position. It should move as little as possible, as the movements of the muscles help the poison to be absorbed more quickly into the blood.
• If the bite was made through clothing, then droplets of poison may remain on it. Therefore, clothing must be cut or carefully removed.
• Since the poison can remain around the wound, the skin needs to be wiped.
• For 15-20 minutes, suck blood with poison from the wound. Spit and rinse your mouth with water as often as possible. This is strictly prohibited in the presence of wounds in the oral cavity.
• After suction, wash the wound with soap and water.
  

If the bite was made in the upper or lower limb, it is recommended:

• 5 centimeters higher than the place where the snake bit, it is necessary to apply a tight bandage;
• immobilize;
• constantly monitor the place of application of the dressing, weaken it as the swelling of the limb increases;
• to lay or plant the victim so that the limb with the wound is below the level of the heart;
• a person should drink as much water as possible;
• if it is not possible to deliver the victim to the hospital within an hour, and his condition worsens, then an hormonal anti-inflammatory drug should be injected.

When bitten by a snake, it is prohibited:

• cut or do cauterization in the bite area;
• impose a tourniquet.

Tick ​​bites

These insects are a carrier of a dangerous disease - tick-borne encephalitis. If a tick bit, do the following:

• Remove the insect as soon as possible with tweezers or thread.
• Tick ​​put in a closed container.
• If the head of the parasite remains in the wound, you need to take a needle, heat it over a fire and try to remove it from the skin.
• Treat the bite site with alcohol, iodine, Miramistin.
• If a rash appears on the skin, take an antihistamine.

Next, you need to contact a special laboratory with a removed tick, where they will conduct its research. If it confirms the fact that the insect is infected with the encephalitis virus, emergency tick-borne encephalitis is prevented in a medical facility.

Spider bites

Scientists say that on our planet there are more than 20,000 arachnids. All of them are poisonous, but to varying degrees. Most spiders have poison of low toxicity, and therefore when a person bites him, he does not cause him any symptoms of poisoning. In our area, only tarantulas and karakurt should be feared (they are also called the “black widow”).

A tarantula is a medium sized spider, about 3 centimeters. Sometimes tarantulas can reach 12 centimeters. The color can be black or dark brown. A feature of this species of spiders, by which it is easy to recognize, is its body, completely covered with hairs.

Karakurt is a highly poisonous spider. It has a small size, its length is only 2 centimeters. The color is black, with red spots on the abdomen.

Tarantula bites

The tarantula is much larger than karakurt, and also due to its hairiness it looks much worse than karakurt. Nevertheless, his bite is not so dangerous for the life of the victim. The bite of this spider is similar to a bee sting. Symptoms are manifested in the following:

• pain;
• the appearance of edema and swelling;
• heaviness and lethargy in the body;
• desire to sleep.

Symptoms disappear after a few days.

Karakurt bites

The bite of a karakurt is much more dangerous , although it is almost painless and looks like a light injection. Symptoms can be noticed only after a few hours. They are expressed in the following:

• First, the skin at the site of the bite turns red and a swelling appears. After an hour, the wound begins to hurt very much. The pain gradually spreads to the stomach, lower back, calves, shoulder blades. She gives to the soles of the feet and to the armpits.
• The victim feels severe weakness.
• Dizzy.
• The face swells.
• Nausea appears.
• It’s hard for a person to breathe.
• Blood pressure rises sharply.
• The pulse is fast.
• Body temperature reaches 39-40 degrees.
• Some muscles begin to twitch convulsively.
• In severe cases, pulmonary edema, convulsions, coma may appear.

First aid for spider bites

First aid for bites of snakes and insects (grade 6 - the time when it is studied at school) should be provided immediately:

• An adult or a child who has been bitten by a spider should make as few movements as possible.
• Take pain medication.
• Apply something cold to the bite site.
• If the bite was made into a limb, bandage it tightly 5 centimeters above the bite.
• Introduce a hormonal anti-inflammatory drug if it does not work within an hour to send the victim to a medical facility.

Now you know how to provide first aid for snake and insect bites. At OBZh (occupational safety classes ) at school they study this already in the 6th grade, but gradually knowledge is forgotten, so it will not be superfluous to restore them in memory.