AUTHOR=Negrin Alba , Battocletti María Alejandra , Juanena Carolina , Morais Victor 

TITLE=Reports of Doses Administered and Adverse Reactions to Snake Antivenom Used in Uruguay in 2018

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Toxicology

VOLUME=Volume 3 - 2021

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/toxicology/articles/10.3389/ftox.2021.690964

DOI=10.3389/ftox.2021.690964

ISSN=2673-3080

ABSTRACT=In Uruguay around 60 cases of snakebite accidents occur every year that need to be treated with specific antivenom. They are caused by two snakes of Bothrops genus: Bothrops alternatus and Bothrops pubescens.  Snakebite accident is a mandatory notification event allowing the acquisition of an accurate registry and a fluent communication with the health care services. The aim of this study was to analyse and report the efficacy and safety of snake antivenoms used in Uruguay in 2018. In this year, Uruguay started to use the BIOL® antivenom (lyophilized) and this use coexist with traditional antivenom liquid forms (Vital Brazil and Malbran). The number of patients treated with heterologous BIOL® antivenom were 28 and the ones treated with heterologous solutions Malbran and Vital Brazil antivenoms were 21. The initial dose of BIOL antivenom were 8 vials instead of 4 vials regularly used with the others antivenoms and it achieved the neutralization of most cases (27/28 cases).  Early adverse reactions were detected in 4 patients (3 in children) treated with BIOL antivenom and there were no adverse reactions in those treated with Malbran or Vital Brazil antivenoms. Lyophilized antivenom BIOL is being used widely in Uruguay without major complications.