Editing Snake (section)

=== Bite ===
{{Main|Snakebite}}
[[File:ViperaBerusFang.JPG|thumb|right|''[[Vipera berus]]'', one fang in glove with a small venom stain, the other still in place]]
Snakes do not ordinarily prey on humans. Unless startled or injured, most snakes prefer to avoid contact and will not attack humans. With the exception of large constrictors, nonvenomous snakes are not a threat to humans. The bite of a nonvenomous snake is usually harmless; their teeth are not adapted for tearing or inflicting a deep puncture wound, but rather grabbing and holding. Although the possibility of infection and tissue damage is present in the bite of a nonvenomous snake, venomous snakes present far greater hazard to humans.<ref name="Meh87"/>{{Rp|209}} The [[World Health Organization]] (WHO) lists [[snakebite]] under the "other neglected conditions" category.<ref>{{cite web |last1=WHO |title=The 17 neglected tropical diseases |url=https://www.who.int/neglected_diseases/diseases/en/ |website=WHO |publisher=[[World Health Organization]] |access-date=October 24, 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222035302/http://www.who.int/neglected_diseases/diseases/en/ |archive-date=February 22, 2014}}</ref>

Documented deaths resulting from snake bites are uncommon. Nonfatal bites from venomous snakes may result in the need for amputation of a limb or part thereof. Of the roughly 725 species of venomous snakes worldwide, only 250 are able to kill a human with one bite. Australia averages only one fatal snake bite per year. In [[India]], 250,000 snakebites are recorded in a single year, with as many as 50,000 recorded initial deaths.<ref name="Sinha">{{Cite news |last=Sinha |first=Kounteya |name-list-style=vanc |title=No more the land of snake charmers... |newspaper=[[The Times of India]] |date=July 25, 2006 |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1803026.cms |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811133738/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2006-07-25/india/27815969_1_snake-bites-russell-s-viper-krait-cobra |archive-date=August 11, 2011}}</ref> The WHO estimates that on the order of 100,000 people die each year as a result of snake bites, and around three times as many amputations and other permanent disabilities are caused by snakebites annually.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs337/en/ |title=Snakebite envenoming |website=[[World Health Organization]] |language=en-GB |access-date=October 27, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170418105431/http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs337/en/ |archive-date=April 18, 2017}}</ref>

The health of people is seriously threatened by snakebites, especially in areas where there is a great diversity of snakes and little access to medical care such as the Amazon Rainforest region in South America.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Amazon Rainforest |url=https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/amazon-rainforest |access-date=2024-03-23 |website=education.nationalgeographic.org |language=en}}</ref> Snakebite is classified by the World Health Organization (WHO) as "other neglected conditions".<ref name=":02">{{Cite web |title=Snakebite |url=https://www.who.int/health-topics/snakebite |access-date=2024-03-23 |website=www.who.int |language=en}}</ref> Although there aren't many recorded snakebite deaths, the bites can cause serious complications and permanent impairments.<ref name=":02" /> The most successful treatment for snakebites is still antivenom, which is made from snake venom.<ref name=":02" /> However, access to antivenom differs greatly by location, with rural areas frequently experiencing difficulties with both cost and availability.<ref name=":12">{{cite journal |last1=Warrell |first1=David A |title=Snake bite |journal=The Lancet |date=January 2010 |volume=375 |issue=9708 |pages=77–88 |doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(09)61754-2 |pmid=20109866 }}</ref> Clinical studies, serum preparation, and venom extraction are among the intricate procedures involved in the manufacturing of antivenom.<ref name=":12" /> The development of alternative treatments and increased accessibility and affordability of antivenom are essential for reducing the global impact of snake bites on human populations.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Williams |first1=David J. |last2=Faiz |first2=Mohd Abul |last3=Abela-Ridder |first3=Bernadette |last4=Ainsworth |first4=Stuart |last5=Bulfone |first5=Tommaso C. |last6=Nickerson |first6=Andrea D. |last7=Habib |first7=Abdulrazaq G. |last8=Junghanss |first8=Thomas |last9=Fan |first9=Hui Wen |last10=Turner |first10=Michael |last11=Harrison |first11=Robert A. |last12=Warrell |first12=David A. |date=2019-02-21 |title=Strategy for a globally coordinated response to a priority neglected tropical disease: Snakebite envenoming |journal=PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases |language=en |volume=13 |issue=2 |pages=e0007059 |doi=10.1371/journal.pntd.0007059 |doi-access=free |issn=1935-2735 |pmc=6383867 |pmid=30789906}}</ref>