Marloth Park snakebite victim lucky to have no tissue damage

A young man who suffered a bite from a highly venomous snake last Thursday, September 21 has been discharged from hospital, without the help of any antivenom and no need for operations.

Dalton Roberts (24), an off-duty iSecure security officer in Marloth Park, was bitten by a puff adder on his finger in the early hours when he reached under his car to pick up a lighter he had dropped.

He had been rushed to Tonga Hospital just after midnight by a Securicon Lowveld ambulance and waited for eight hours for antivenom. His mother, Magdal, and sister, Bianca, arrived at the hospital at 04:30 and were informed at 08:00 that Dalton had not been given antivenom, and it was being arranged that he be taken to Rob Ferreira Hospital to receive it.

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The Mpumalanga Department of Health’s spokesperson, Dumisani Malamule, said Dalton had been given prophylactic treatment and antibiotics while at Tonga Hospital.

“According to the patient, he is allergic to penicillin. The hospital arranged with Rob Ferreira for further management,” said Malamule.

He was eventually rushed through to Rob Ferreira by his mother and sister where he was assessed and told by the doctors that he would not be administered antivenom because it would not be very effective so many hours after being bitten.

Chris Hobkirk of Lowveld Venom Suppliers said a puff adder’s venom is cytotoxic, meaning it causes necrosis to the skin and tissue cells. It was therefore initially thought that there would be extensive damage to Dalton’s arm, however, this turned out not to be the case.

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Magdal said she had been told by the doctors on Tuesday evening that they had some good news for her: there was no need to operate on Dalton as there appeared to be no damage to his skin tissue.

“He was discharged from hospital on Tuesday evening, September 26. It is excellent news. He will need physiotherapy for his hand as there was damage to his nerves, but his skin is fine. His two fingers are still a little swollen and will be for a while, but the swelling to his whole arm is gone.”

Magdal said the family would not have made it through this tough time without the support of the community. She thanked every person who had reached out to her and Dalton and donated to assist with ambulance costs and the subsequent physiotherapy.

Hobkirk added that Dalton was extremely lucky he had no damage to his tissue, and said the snakebite might have been more superficial.

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He also urged the public to remain vigilant as the Lowveld has entered snake season. He said the rain coupled with the high temperatures will be a sign for most reptiles to eat and mate, and that people would more than likely see snakes in the coming months.

He said the safest thing to do was stay clear of the reptiles as much as possible and to not try and kill or catch them yourself.

“Have the number of a snake catcher on your phone and leave it to the professionals,” he said.

You can contact Hobkirk on 082 372 3350.