RATTLESNAKE BITE TREATED WITH ACUPUNCTURE
Dr. Shapiro Presents Case at National Convention in
April 2000
Dr. Dein Shapiro, a Family Practitioner and Medical Acupuncturist in
Branchburg, presented an unusual case at the annual convention of the
American Academy of Medical Acupuncture in Orlando on April 28th. The case
underscored the usefulness of acupuncture in wilderness medicine. It was one
of only ten cases chosen by a selection committee as a "poster presentation"
for the 425 physicians attending the conference, and it was well received by
the participants.
In August of 1998, Dr. Shapiro and his wife were on a rafting trip in
Idaho when one of the guides was bitten on the foot by a rattlesnake at
night. In that remote wilderness area, no emergency services were available
and there was no way to evacuate the patient until morning. Despite
appropriate first-aid, the guide was quite ill during the night indicating he
had a significant amount of venom in his system, and enough venom locally to
cause permanent injury. The next morning the foot was extremely painful and
grossly swollen. It looked like surgery might be required to preserve the
blood supply to the foot. Outside help was still not available. At that
point Dr. Shapiro offered acupuncture to the patient as a means of reducing
the pain and swelling. "Everyone knows that acupuncture can be used to treat
pain," said Dr. Shapiro, "but it also has a profound effect on inflammation
and swelling. I just didn't know if it would be effective against the pain
and swelling caused by snake venom. It was worth a try."
Patient in his tent with his treatment in place.
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Close-up of patient's foot near the end of treatment.
Fortunately for the patient, there was a dramatic reduction in swelling
during the 35-minute acupuncture procedure. The patient was evacuated a few
hours later and made a full recovery. "I always have acupuncture needles
with me," said Dr. Shapiro. "A few packages of these sterile and disposable
needles are the most versatile first-aid kit you can imagine. In fact, I had
the original metal Band-Aid box that held my needles that day on display as
part of my poster presentation. It was labeled:
"World's Smallest First-Aid Kit."
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