[ti:Steps Urged to Prevent Snakebites, Improve Treatments] [ar:Christopher Cruise] [al:Development Report] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]This is the VOA [00:01.86]Special English [00:03.15]Development Report. [00:04.75]Snakes bite an estimated [00:06.94]five and a half million [00:08.64]people worldwide each year. [00:11.00]Experts say tens [00:12.95]of thousands of people [00:14.40]die from venom poisoning. [00:16.56]An untreated or incorrectly [00:19.40]treated bite might [00:21.19]require the removal [00:22.74]of a bitten foot, [00:24.24]for example, or an arm. [00:26.40]Each year around four hundred [00:29.85]thousand amputations [00:31.39]are the result of snakebites. [00:33.99]Last year, for the first time, [00:36.58]the World Health Organization [00:39.77]added snakebites to its list of [00:42.16]"neglected tropical diseases." [00:44.97]This recognition aims [00:47.41]to bring greater attention [00:49.06]to the problem. [00:50.32]Scientists know of about [00:52.81]three thousand kinds of snakes. [00:54.70]About six hundred of them [00:57.55]are venomous. [00:59.04]These are most often found [01:01.80]in rural areas [01:03.49]in tropical climates. [01:05.85]Asia and Africa have the highest [01:10.02]number of snakebites [01:11.41]-- together about [01:13.31]four million a year. [01:15.31]Latin America and islands [01:18.55]in the South Pacific follow. [01:20.61]The highest number of victims [01:23.39]are agricultural workers. [01:25.19]Snakebites are also common [01:28.09]among fishermen, [01:29.54]hunters and children. [01:31.68]Many victims live in areas [01:34.67]with poor or non-existent [01:38.15]health care systems and [01:40.59]where antivenom treatments [01:42.53]are often not available. [01:44.92]Antivenom is the only cure. [01:48.61]But experts say [01:51.14]antivenom technologies [01:53.38]and their use need [01:55.77]to be improved. [01:57.27]Problems include a shortage [01:59.86]of manufacturers and the [02:01.78]high cost of treatment. [02:04.88]Also, there is a widespread [02:08.41]lack of knowledge [02:09.77]among local health workers [02:11.74]about how to use antivenoms. [02:14.62]The treatments can cause dangerous [02:17.56]and even deadly reactions [02:20.05]if not used carefully. [02:22.09]Antivenom contains proteins [02:25.92]from animals such as horses or sheep. [02:29.01]The animals are injected [02:31.50]repeatedly with one [02:33.10]or more different snake venoms [02:35.88]to produce immunity. [02:37.77]The Lancet medical journal [02:41.04]recently published a series [02:43.56]of reports on snakebite [02:45.66]prevention and treatment. [02:47.61]David Warrell at the [02:49.95]University of Oxford [02:51.32]in England co-wrote one of them. [02:54.65]He praised efforts [02:56.90]by the W.H.O. to establish [03:00.00]common practices [03:01.15]for the production, [03:02.85]regulation and control of antivenom. [03:07.13]But he says more must be done. [03:10.46]The authors say [03:12.75]community education programs [03:14.95]could help prevent snakebites [03:17.64]by teaching people how to avoid them. [03:20.19]They also suggest actions [03:22.64]like providing protective boots [03:24.76]to wear while working in fields, [03:26.66]and not sleeping on the ground. [03:29.90]Also important is providing information [03:33.64]about where dangerous snakes [03:36.28]are most likely to live [03:38.58]and when they are most active. [03:41.61]And that's the VOA Special English [03:45.17]Development Report, [03:46.38]written by June Simms. [03:48.62]MP3s, transcripts and broadcasts [03:51.86]of our reports are available [03:53.33]at 51voa.com. [03:57.18]I'm Christopher Cruise.