How do you treat animal bites on humans?

Having a furry friend such as cats and dogs can be a great way to destress from the hectic pressure of life. While pets can be adorable and do make people happy, animal bites may still occur especially coming from stray animals. Animal bites do not only cause pain but also potentially be lethal in some cases. Medications such as Augmentin 625 mg are among the medications used to treat animal bites on humans.

An animal bite is an injury caused by the mouth and teeth of an animal. There are numerous animal species that have the potential to bite humans but the most important are those from snakes, dogs, cats and monkeys. Rodents such as rabbits and squirrels may also be causing bites. The most frequent part of the human affected by animal bites are hands and face.

While most animal bites are considered not serious, problems could arise when the bite is severe or there are signs of infection. This is especially true for snake bites as there is a possibility of the poisons from the snake bites. It is estimated that 2.4 millions snake bites are poisonous and up to 125 000 deaths annually with 400 000 amputations worldwide and with other severe health complications such as contractures, tetanus and psychological sequelae.

Snake bites are not the only dangerous kind of animal bites. Cats and dogs, although we all know can be pets, can also pose danger to humans when it bites. Dog bites are commonly seen as macerated (the wound is soggy, feels soft or appears whiter) due to the ripping and tearing forces. Cat bites are narrow and deep as the animal rarely pills or shakes its head, causing it to simply bite and hold the victim. Both cats and dogs carry risk for rabies and tetanus. Rabies is a disease caused by the rabies virus affecting the central nervous system that may cause abnormal behaviour, hallucination, hydrophobia (fear of water) and insomnia. Tetanus is an infection caused by bacteria called Clostridium tetani that causes a person to have “lockjaw”. This will cause a person to have trouble swallowing, jaw cramping and even seizures.

Due to the fact that animal bites may pose potential health risks, it is important for those who are affected to know what to do when it occurs. Knowing what to do can help prevent complications that could come with when left untreated. Here are what you should do first when you get bite by animal:

• Clean the skin around the wound with soap and warm water. You may use antiseptic but avoid using it directly on the wound.
• Try to remove objects like teeth, hair or dirt from the wound under running clean water.
• Press onto the wound with clean cloth or dry dressing to stop bleeding if it bleeds heavily.
• When the wound is clean, pat it dry and cover with clean dressing.
• Take painkillers such as paracetamol to ease the pain and swelling.

However, if you think there are still objects such as teeth, hair or dirt in the wound, you may want to ask a health professional to remove it and clean the wound. If the bite feels more warm or swollen, or appears redder or darker than surrounding skin, you may need to get medication from doctors. Should the bite cause you to have a fever, the bite smells unpleasant or there is leaking fluid from the bite, you need to get checked by a doctor.

Specifically for snake bites, you should never try to suck or cut the poison or venom out of the bite. You should also not tie anything tightly around the part of the body where the bite is. A person who just got bitten by a snake is recommended to lie in a recovery position when possible and keep the part of the body that was bitten as still as they can. It is best to remember the colour and pattern of the snake so that the information can be conveyed to the doctor treating them.

After the wound or bite has been clean or managed by healthcare professionals, they may give antibiotics especially for high-risk wounds and to decrease infection risk. They may also give specific vaccination against rabies and tetanus. This will depend on the status of the animal that bites. For snake bites, antivenom may be given. This is why it is important for patients to know the characteristics of the snake so that the antivenom given is appropriate based on evaluation of the likelihood of the snake habitats.

It can be concluded that animal bites are not something that should be taken lightly. It is best for patients to get checked by doctors as soon as possible to determine if the bites are serious or not. This can help patients to receive the right medication or treatment and reduce the risk for further infections.

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