New Delhi, Sept. 3 -- India already records the world's highest number of snakebite deaths-between 46,000 to 60,000 annually, primarily affecting rural populations and agricultural workers -and the threat is set to intensify.
A new study, published in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases warns that climate change is likely to exacerbate the public health burden by expanding the habitat of venomous snakes into new geographic regions.
The study focuses on the 'Big Four' venomous snakes-the Indian cobra (Naja naja), common krait (Bungarus caeruleus), Russell's viper (Daboia russelii), and saw-scaled viper (Echis carinatus)-which are responsible for the majority of medically significant Snake Bite Envenomations (SBE) on the subcontinent.
While t...