Acute renal failure in viperidae snake bite victims

ABSTRACT

This study included 10 cases of viperidae snake bite that developed acute renal failure out of 73 cases admitted to various wards of Liaquat Medical College hospital during the last two years. All these patients reported to the hospital 3-5 days after the bite. All had signs of severe envenomation with incoagulable blood and prolonged PT and APTT. All has bleeding manifestations. Blood urea and serum creatinine were increased in all patients and four were anuric. Leucocytosis and thrombocytopenia were found in 7 cases, serum bilirubin was increased in 4 cases, 4 patients required dialysis and 4 out of 10 cases expired. Bad prognostic features included severe envenomation, leucocytosis, thrombocytopenia, and necessity for dialysis. We conclude that acute renal failure is a serious complication of viperidae snake bite with high mortality rate and it necessitates early and effective treatment