All snakebite deaths in Karnataka will now be audited at district level

State Health Department audits rising snakebite deaths, implements measures to reduce morbidity and mortality in Karnataka.

With a steady rise in the number of snakebite cases and deaths, the State Health Department will now audit all snakebite deaths. The H1N1 death audit committee in the districts has now been assigned with the responsibility of auditing deaths from snakebites, according to a recent government order (GO).  

Snakebite envenoming is a neglected tropical disease (NTD) caused by the bite of a venomous snake, which are usually accidental in nature. The State reported 3,392 cases and 20 deaths this year as of April 28.

The number of recorded snakebite envenoming cases and deaths in Karnataka have seen a sharp rise from 6,596 bite cases and 19 deaths in 2023 to 13,235 cases and 101 deaths in 2024. This follows Karnataka declaring snakebite envenoming cases and deaths notifiable under the Karnataka Epidemic Diseases Act, 2020 from February 2024.

According to the GO, all the Deputy Commissioners have been authorised to review the audit of deaths from snakebites by the H1N1 committee in their jurisdiction. The  Deputy Commissioners have also been directed to conduct a review of the implementation of the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Snakebite Envenoming (NPSE) in their jurisdictional district at least once in every quarter. They have also been directed to take necessary measures to correct the challenges noticed in the implementation of NPSE, stated the GO.

Ansar Ahmed, State Project Director, Integrated Disease Surveillance Project (IDSP), said after the snakebite envenoming cases and deaths were declared notifiable,  measures were initiated to reduce the morbidity and mortality due to snakebites.

“While anti-snake venom (ASV) is made available in sufficient stocks in all facilities (starting from primary health centres to district hospitals), standard operating procedures (SOPs) to administer initial loading dose of 10 vials for all snakebite cases with signs and symptoms of snakebite envenomation have been issued. Besides, physicians and medical officers were trained at different levels for managing snakebite cases,” he said. 

However, despite all measures, the State is facing some challenges in the implementation of the programme. “Reporting of cases and deaths is not 100% as some of the medical colleges and private hospitals are not reporting all cases or there is delay in reporting. Besides, bite victims still seek treatment from traditional faith healers leading to loss of precious time, which is the main cause of death as per death analysis,” Dr. Ahmed said.