STRATEGY FOR PREVENTION OF SNAKEBITES IN ANGOLA

Resumo

Morbimortality due to snakebites is relevant in many regions of the world and it is a serious medical condition that affects primarily rural communities in Africa, Latin America, Asia and New Guinea, so that the World Health Organization has placed it among the Neglected Tropical Diseases since 2009. The prevalence of snakebite cases in Angola is unknown, but we can conclude that it should be high given the data from neighbour and bordering countries, such as the Republic of Congo with 120 to 145 bites per 100 000 inhabitants per year. Angola is part of the region 18 of Sub-Saharan Central Africa, where estimated envenoming cases may go from 18 176 to 47 820, of which 256 to 3083 eventually die.
In spite of this global impact, snakebites has received little attention from global health community, from pharmaceutical industry, and from the governments, which do not consider the issue as a priority. As a result, there is a shortage of health programs that address snakebites at regional, national and global levels.
We present information as a basic and inexpensive tool because it is recognized that reversal of the situation of the most neglected tropical diseases will only be possible by means of more awareness of populations about attending medical services instead of traditional practices, as well as health professionals regarding mandatory notification and identification of envenoming type and adequate treatment.