01491nas a2200217   4500000000100000008004100001260003000042653003900072653002500111653001200136100001500148700001700163700001500180700001500195700001300210245004300223856007800266300000900344490000600353520091400359       2009                            d  bPublic Library of Science10aNeglected tropical diseases (NTDs)10aSnakebite envenoming10aPoverty1 aHarrison R1 aHargreaves A1 aWagstaff S1 aFaragher B1 aLalloo D00aSnake envenoming: a disease of poverty  uhttp://journals.plos.org/plosntds/article?id=10.1371/journal.pntd.0000569  ae5690 v33 a<p>Most epidemiological and clinical reports on snake envenoming focus on a single country and describe rural communities as being at greatest risk. Reports linking snakebite vulnerability to socioeconomic status are usually limited to anecdotal statements. The few reports with a global perspective have identified the tropical regions of Asia and Africa as suffering the highest levels of snakebite-induced mortality. Our analysis examined the association between globally available data on snakebite-induced mortality and socioeconomic indicators of poverty.<br />
This study, the first of its kind, unequivocally demonstrates that snake envenoming is a disease of the poor. The negative association between snakebite deaths and government expenditure on health confirms that the burden of mortality is highest in those countries least able to deal with the considerable financial cost of snakebite.</p>