Myanmar will manufacture more snake antivenom this year due to predictions that there will be an increased need for the product.
‘According to investigations carried out by the Ministry of Health, we currently need 80,000 quantities to cover the whole country. As a result, we will produce up to 100,000 quantities this year,’ said U Ko Ko Aung, the director of Say War factory, reports 7Day Daily.
In 2014, Myanmar produced 60,000 quantities of antivenom. In 2015, we produced 80,000. However, this hasn’t been enough to combat the amount of snake bite injuries within the country.
As a result, Myanmar used to have to purchase antivenom from neighboring countries such as India and Thailand.
‘When we didn’t have enough antivenom in the past, we had to have it imported. However, as a result, the antibodies weren’t always effective’, U Ko Ko Aung explained.
‘For instance, snakes in Thailand aren’t the same as snakes in Myanmar, and snakes in India aren’t the same as snakes in Myanmar. If a victim came to us with a cobra bite and we gave them one of the imported antivenom, we had no way of knowing whether or not it would be effective. However, we still had to use it because we had no other option. Now, our output can meet our demand.’
In Myanmar, there are approximately 15,000 snake bite victims every year. According to reports, 90% of injuries are viper bites, while 10% are cobra bites.
‘We’ve now manufactured cobra and viper antivenom using the appropriate antibodies that will combat the types of snakes found within the country’, U Ko Ko Aung said.
We advise everyone to steer clear of cobras and vipers at all times, but at least now you can feel safe knowing that if you were to ever get bitten, you can receive the proper treatment and all that other fun jazz.
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