354 VENOMS 



XXXVI. — Case reported by Dr. Gries, Fort-de-France, Mar- 

 tinique. 



" About 7 a.m., on November 25, 1896, G., aged 23, a fusilier 

 belonging to the disciplinary battalion, was bitten by a Bothrops 

 at Fort Desaix under the following circumstances. One of his 

 comrades had just caught the snake, and was holding its head 

 down on the ground by means of a forked stick applied to the 

 neck. G. passed a running noose round the reptile's neck, but, 

 his comrade having withdrawn the fork too soon, the snake 

 had time to dart at him and bite him in left thumb. At the 

 moment when he was bitten the man was squatting, but he 

 quickly stood up, carrying with him the snake, which remained for 

 a few seconds suspended from the thumb by its fangs, and did 

 not let go until its victim had struck it on the head with his fist. 

 G. immediately ran to one of his officers, who applied a tight 

 ligature to the base of his thumb, and sent him off to the hospital, 

 where he arrived on foot and quite out of breath, ten or twelve 

 minutes after the accident. He was at once given a hypodermic 

 injection of 10 c.c. of antivenomous serum in the left flank ; the 

 thumb was washed with a 1 in 60 solution of hypochlorite of 

 calcium, after which the ligature was removed. A few moments 

 later, thinking the case a serious one, I caused a second injection 

 of 10 c.c. of serum to be given in the right flank. 



" Immediately after being bitten the patient experienced com- 

 plete loss of sensation in the limb, as far as the middle of the 

 arm. About 9 a.m. he complained of acute shooting pains in the 

 hand. At 11 o'clock the limb was still benumbed, but by degrees 

 sensation returned. Profuse sweating. 



" On November 26 sensation was restored in the whole limb ; 

 no inflammatory phenomena. The patient was perfectly well. 



"The Bothrops on being brought to the hospital measured 

 1 metre 47 cm. in length." 



XXXVII.— Case reported by Dr. Lavigiie, Colonial-Surgeon 

 at Fort-de-France. 



