Instituto Clodomiro Picado, Facultad de Microbiología, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José 11501, Costa Rica.
Toxins (Basel). 2020 Jan 11;12(1):45. doi: 10.3390/toxins12010045.
A qualitative study was carried out in south-eastern Costa Rica on the circumstances and consequences of snakebite envenomings. This region has the highest incidence of snakebites and the lowest per capita and per family income in the country. There is a high degree of destitution and an unstable labor situation in the region. This study was based on semistructured interviews with 15 people who had suffered snakebite envenomings. This sample size was established on the basis of data saturation. Bites occurred mostly while doing agricultural work, either as salaried workers, as occasional workers, or working on their own. Although all people were attended in health centers of the public health system, and received antivenom free of charge, the majority of them did not receive compensation or rehabilitation upon discharge from the health facilities as a result of not being regular salaried workers. People described many difficulties as a consequence of these envenomings, such as permanent physical sequelae, including two amputations, psychological consequences, economic hardships, and difficulties for reinsertion into agricultural work. In spite of the significant advances that Costa Rica has made for reducing the impact of these envenomings, results reveal issues that require urgent attention by government and civil society organizations, to compensate for the physical, psychological, social, and economic consequences of these envenomings.
在哥斯达黎加东南部进行了一项定性研究，以了解蛇咬伤的情况和后果。该地区的蛇咬伤发病率最高，人均和家庭收入在全国最低。该地区极度贫困，劳动力状况不稳定。本研究基于对 15 名曾遭受蛇咬伤的人的半结构化访谈。该样本量是基于数据饱和的基础上确定的。咬伤大多发生在从事农业工作时，无论是作为受薪工人、临时工还是自营职业者。尽管所有人都在公共卫生系统的卫生中心接受了免费的抗蛇毒血清治疗，但由于他们不是正规受薪工人，大多数人在离开卫生机构时没有获得赔偿或康复。人们描述了这些咬伤带来的许多困难，如永久性身体后遗症，包括两次截肢、心理后果、经济困难以及重新融入农业工作的困难。尽管哥斯达黎加在减少这些咬伤的影响方面取得了重大进展，但研究结果揭示了一些问题，需要政府和民间社会组织紧急关注，以补偿这些咬伤的身体、心理、社会和经济后果。
