Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Effectiveness of polyvalent antivenom for viper bites in dogs
By Vanni, Michele et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary emergency and critical care (San Antonio, Tex. : 2001)·2020·Department of Veterinary Science, Italy·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: A prospective multicenter observational study of Viperidae polyvalent immune F(ab')antivenom administration for the treatment of viper envenomation in dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 82 dogs that had been bitten by venomous snakes showed signs of distress and worsening health. They were treated with an equine-derived antivenom, which helped most of them improve significantly within just a few hours. By the 4-week follow-up, most of the dogs had returned to normal, although a few had minor blood test abnormalities. Unfortunately, five dogs did not survive, and some experienced mild reactions to the antivenom. Overall, the treatment was effective for the majority of the dogs.
People also search for: dog snake bite treatment · viper antivenom for dogs · signs of snake envenomation in dogs
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To test an equine-derived polyvalent viperid antivenom (EPVA) in the treatment of dogs with evidence of viper envenomation. DESIGN: Prospective, multicenter observational study. SETTING: Veterinary emergency and critical care hospitals. ANIMALS: A total of 82 client-owned dogs with progressive clinical signs after viperid snakebite were enrolled in the study. INTERVENTIONS: Equine-derived polyvalent viperid antivenom was administered at a dosage of 1 mL/kg body weight, either by IV infusion or SC injection. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: A standardized snakebite severity score (SSS) was used to characterize the severity of envenomation and the clinical course after EPVA treatment. Most dogs had improved SSS both at 4 (65.8%) and 8 hours (81.7%) following EPVA administration. Five dogs died. At the 4-week assessment, 3 dogs had slightly abnormal hematological or coagulation parameters; all other surviving dogs showed no abnormalities. Antivenom-related acute or intermediate reactions occurred in 12 dogs (14.6%). CONCLUSIONS: In the first study on antivenom in dogs in Italy, the effects of progressive viper envenomation were stabilized or reversed in the large majority of dogs receiving EPVA, as confirmed by the SSS analyses.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31858721/