Wilderness Medicine: Snake Bites (Rattlesnake envenomations)

Snake envenomation expert Tim Erickson, MD explains how snake bites occur, tips for prevention of snakebites, and what to do if bitten by a snake.
This is video 1 of 2 on snake bites. Video 2 covers snakebite treatment including antivenom for rattlesnake bites (Diamondback, Mohave, Cottonmouth, and many others).
MedWild provides wilderness medicine, wilderness survival, and search and rescue instructional videos on a variety of topics: high altitude illness, traveler’s diarrhea, shoulder dislocation and reduction, shelter building, bushcraft, space blankets, hypothermia, medical kits, survival kits, frostbite, snake bites, fire craft, ropes and knots, orthopedic injuries and sam splints, cold water immersion and more.
Instructor: Howard Donner, MD
Co-Author “Field Guide to Wilderness Medicine”
Served as a physician for Denali National Park, Himalayan Rescue Association, and the 1998 NOVA Everest expedition. Served as a medical operations consultant for NASA for over 5 years. Whitewater rafting guide, commercial pilot, and certified flight instructor.
Recommended Audience: Outdoor enthusiasts and health care professionals including physicians, nurses, search and rescue teams, EMT, paramedics, ski patrol, corpsman, guides, instructors, wilderness first responders, and anyone else interested in educational and “how to” videos on wilderness emergency medicine, travel medicine, search and rescue, expedition medicine, backcountry first aid, wilderness survival training, and military medicine. Dr. Donner’s draws on his extensive backcountry and travel experience to highlight key signs, symptoms, treatments, and improvised techniques and skills.
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MedWild videos featured at: www.wilderness-medicine.com
Produced by Kyle Allred PA-C
Please Note: MedWild Videos are for educational purposes and not intended to replace recommendations by your health care provider.

[@MedWild]

See the instructors in this video (Drs. Howard Donner and Tim Erickson) give presentations and teach a variety of hands-on workshops at the upcoming National CME Conference on Wilderness Medicine. All medical specialities are welcome! wilderness-medicine.com/cme-conferences/santa-fe/

[@TheMisterMonkeyman]

Great insightful, honest, practical, and useful info. Thank you for posting. Peace.

[@gregnatsch8787]

Very good videos. My first Wilderness Medicine experience was 1991. Doing research on the snakes in the area I was going to, I spoke to our State Dept of Conservation expert. He told me about the car keys treatment! Now we can add cell phone, we had radio then. Experienced dealing with coral snakes and suspected snakebite. Really enjoy the videos and the subject matter.

[@off-gridrockstar420]

Amazing this guy looks just like jim Carrey.

[@bs5697]

But sounds like Jack Nicholson

[@tohonour]

Thanks for uploading!

[@RyuDekay]

Jim Carrey knows an awful lot about snakes!

[@lilajean8146]

1:35 This guy has seen somethings... Fantastic video, a life saver...literally!! Thank you!!😁

[@reverendsaltine6852]

Places like central NM, south of Santa Fe, can be CRAWLING with MANY rattlers. Beware :)

[@adasiaengengineer4730]

good video, hope to see new ones soon

[@exploringgodscountry]

I am almost always off trail 😅 only seen a couple. We look carefully where we step. You cannot be zoned out off trail.

[@1seticat]

For the record you can encounter them on a trail

[@MrMozaro]

How much time after bite can I say it's dry-bite? Maybe can I touch the blooding bite with my finger (or maybe with lip (and speed up watching the symptoms), because that's sensitiver than every other body part)? How much time do I have before die if a snake bitten me and it is poisonous?

[@seanh70]

1.) Obviously, you won't know if a venomous snake bite is dry or not, so 24 hours is a good rule, if you haven't seen any symptoms in that amount of time, then it was probably a dry bite. 2.) Touching the blood with any other body part is not advised, but moreso, most of the time the venom won't affect healthy skin on the outside. The danger comes from the injection into the tissue and bloodstream. 3.) If a snake bites you and is dangerous, then it is venomous. There are very few "poisonous" snakes. In order for a poisonous snake to be dangerous you would have to bite it. Thats the difference between poisonous and venomous. But to answer your question, if you are bitten by a venomous snake, that does not necessarily mean that you are going to die. Most people live. Now, you may lose a finger or a part of the dead tissue if bitten on the leg or something, but it doesn't mean you are going to die if you get bit. But yes, some snakes can make you die within minutes, (mostly those outside of the US.) Some snake bites, if you were to die, can accomplish this in a few hours.

[@bossLARChannelcobraKing]

Even cobras won`t go after you man, nor attack you! I`ve been catching cobras for a long time for the production of anti venom, I`m sure about it!

[@shrimpymuscles8413]

There are some ppl who get bite by diamond back snakes and refuse treatment. What happens to a person who was bit on the outer ankle by a diamond back. There is a religious group in KY that catch and handle snakes in Ky. They frequently are bitten.

[@richardhincemon]

They usually die or have long lasting effects from their hemotoxic venom.

[@sheerwillsurvival2064]

I would like to add they are a great source of protein 🤠

[@willfromsc1168]

Woah, woah, woah, woah, woah, Sometimes testicles are bitten, WTH were they doing that they could be bitten there?

[@kevinp8108]

@Willfromsc - who the hell will suck out the poison on the testicles? If a friend of mine gets bitten on the testicles, he's a dead man!

[@sheerwillsurvival2064]

Taking a dump without looking or digging a hole 😁

[@byronbrasher8118]

Calistoga Pioneer Cemetery

[@donreinholz8121]

I guess dry bites happen quite often.

[@Beast9894]

"Dont tread on me" flag is what I think of

[@phucyu8428]

"Sometimes testicles get bitten" Who in the abstract (or perhaps actual) fuck would put a rattlesnake near their testicles?! (Reads news articles from Florida) Oh, that guy...

[@RICDirector]

Add drunks to the list. Some guys think that you can take a break from holding them by tucking the snake between their legs....

[@sheerwillsurvival2064]

Taking a dump without first looking