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    At Guinea's only specialized snake bite clinic, doctors need luck and antivenom

    Life or death in this country's only specialized clinic depends on how fast people can make the arduous trip to get there and the number of doses on hand.
    by Sam Bradpiece Nov 07, 2022 5 minutes
    A forest cobra is harvested for its venom at the Research Institute of Applied Biology of Guinea. Its venom will be analyzed for various toxins and help inform future antidote development.

    Fatoumata Lamourana was oblivious to the green mamba's approach. But as the 68-year-old led her cattle through the scrubby bushlands of western Guinea, she felt its short fangs penetrate the flesh above her ankle.

    "When it bit me, I tried to run away but could only go so far before I collapsed and started vomiting," she said.

    Within less than half an hour, deadly neurotoxins from the western green mamba had surged through her bloodstream, attacking her nervous system. By the time Lamourana arrived at Kindia's centre de traitement des, Guinea's only specialized snake bite clinic, her eyes had rolled to the back of her head, her breathing was shallow and she was unable to speak. Doctors drilled an intravenous catheter into her left tibia to deliver antivenom. Lamourana's veins had collapsed.

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