‘Neglected disease’: Nepal readies for more snakebite cases as summer approaches

Snakebites are a deadly threat in Nepal, especially in rural areas, but experts believe targeted awareness campaigns and increased treatment access could save lives

Districts in Nepal’s southern lowlands are the most vulnerable to snakebites due to the warmer climate and reptile habitats throughout the region

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Nepal’s Toxinology Association organises awareness programmes at schools to educate students on snakebites and conservation of snakes. Photo: Kamal Devkota

Published: 6:00pm, 5 May 2024

On a warm September evening, Rachana Kharel was cooking in her home in southern Nepal’s Bardiya district when she suddenly experienced a “strong current-like sensation” in her body. She then saw two bite marks on her legs and a snake slithering away.

Kharel’s family members rushed her to the nearest snakebite treatment centre in the town of Nepalgunj. It took her less than 45 minutes to reach Bheri Hospital and receive treatment from what was identified as a cobra bite, which can kill people within one to two hours if left untreated.

“We used to follow various preventive measures to deter snakes from the house but have never encountered such bites in the neighbourhood before,” the 20-year-old student said. “Luckily, we reached the hospital in time.”

While Kharel received timely treatment, many others in Nepal are less fortunate. Snakebites remain a pervasive and deadly threat in the country, especially among its rural populations, but experts believe that targeted awareness campaigns and increased treatment access could halve the number of fatalities.

Nepal’s Toxinology Association hosts a snakebite awareness programme at a school. Globally, nearly 138,000 people die of snakebites annually, according to the WHO. Photo: Kamal Devkota

A 2022 research in the medical journal The Lancet, which is said to be the first snakebite epidemiological study in Nepal, estimated that there were as many as 37,661 snakebite cases and 3,225 deaths annually in the country’s southern plains. However, the government’s hospital-reported data from the past two decades show an average of 20,000 hospitalisations and about 1,000 deaths every year.

Globally, nearly 138,000 people die of snakebites annually, according to data from the World Health Organization, with one 2019 study estimating that 70 per cent of those casualties are in South Asia.