BITES AND STINGS

Common causes: Scorpion,snake,bee,ant,wasp... Pointers: Pain and swelling of the affected area, discoloration, altered sensation like numbness or 'pins' and 'needles' Others: nausea,vomiting,headache,poor vision,muscle weakness/paralysis,difficulty breathing. A small percentage of people can develop severe reaction (anaphylaxis), signs of which include facial swelling, difficulty breathing and shock(clammy skin,racing pulse,confusion or sleepiness). WHAT TO DO: * Wash the area with soapy water or salty solution or savlon antiseptic wound wash. * If it's a bee sting, remove the stuck venom sack by scrapping or direct pull,otherwise it keeps releasing its venom. * keep the person still/calm. Nervousness increases the spread of the venom. * keep the affect area lower than the level of the heart. * If the wound is bleeding apply steps in listed in the first aid for bleeding. * If it's a snake bite,make effort to kill it and get a picture of it to the hospital or simple note the features of the snake. It will help the doctor decide whether the snake is poisonous or not. Don't panic when bitten by snake because over 80% of snake are non poisonous and only very few of the of the poisonous get to bite people. *seek medical attention immediately. Features of a poisonous and non poisonous snakes: [Non Poisonous] Snakes Head - Rounded Fangs - Not present Pupils - Rounded A'nal Plate - Double row of plates Bite Mark - Row of small teeth. [Poisonous Snakes] Head - Triangle - except Cobra Fangs - Present Pupils - Elliptical pupil A'nal Plate - Single row of plates Bite Mark - Fang Mark DON'Ts # Don't cut the wound # Don't drink things like kerosine,oil,alcohol etc # Don't apply ice # Applying a tourniquet above the affected area is still controversial.

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