| Treatment of systemic envenoming in snakebite victims has, in the past, depended almost entirely on the individual clinician's experience in assessing the severity of envenoming. The efficacy of treatment is obviously related to the neutralising potency of the antivenom used, the route by which it is administered and the dose. The use of techniques for evaluating the efficacy of antivenoms has proved to be very useful, as an adjunct to recognised clinical observations, for a more objective evaluation of antivenom efficacy and dosage. In patients bitten by many vipers, including the Brazilian pit vipers, the reversal of the venom-induced coagulopathy provides an ideal indicator as to the efficacy of an antivenom. Likewise, the development of enzyme... |
