Indian red scorpion envenoming

Abstract

The clinical course and treatment outcome of scorpion envenoming in 293 children was studied in a hospital at Mahad in Raigad district of Maharastra. 111 (38%) children who reported 1-10 hours (mean 3.5 hours) after sting had hypertension, 87 (29.6%) with tachycardia reported within 1-24 hours (mean 6.7 hours) of being envenomed and 72 (24.5%) children developed acute pulmonary edema after 6-24 hours (mean 8 hours) of sting. Six victims were brought dead, while 17 (6%) died later owing to multiorgan failure with loss of consciousness and convulsions (who reported after 24 hours of sting). Early administration of prazosin (125-250 ug orally) improved the clinical symptoms. Morbidity and mortality due to scorpion envenoming depends upon time lapse between sting and administration of post synaptic alpha-1 blocker, prazosin hydrochloride.