Researchers estimate that snake envenoming kills between 274,000 and 513,000 people annually worldwide, far higher than official statistics suggest. The study, led by researchers at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, analyzed data from 79 countries through March 31, 2025, updating findings from a 2008 global burden study.

Over half of countries where venomous snakes pose a threat do not track snakebite cases systematically. Many victims in rural sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia live hours from clinics, lack transport, or consult traditional healers, leaving their cases unreported in national health statistics.

The researchers built a geostatistical model combining published research data with environmental and socioeconomic factors to fill gaps. The model estimated that 2.1 million people experience snake envenoming annually at minimum, with the true number potentially reaching 7 million.

Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for 45 percent of global envenomings and fatalities, with people in that region experiencing snake envenoming at nearly three times the rate of south Asia. Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Ethiopia face particularly high burdens. The continent hosts medically important species including saw-scaled vipers, puff adders, African cobras, and mambas.

Structural factors drive this disparity. Rural agricultural workers labor in open fields without protective boots and walk unlit paths at night. When bites occur, fragile health systems, long travel distances to facilities, and high antivenom costs or shortages turn treatable emergencies into fatalities.

The study estimates over 800,000 survivors suffer long-term disabilities annually, including amputations and permanent impairments that push farming families into deeper poverty.

Dileepa Ediriweera, health data scientist at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, wrote the article. The World Health Organization has set a target to halve snakebite mortality and disability by 2030. The researchers state that identifying high-risk hotspots using spatial risk data can help governments stockpile antivenom where needed most and improve rural healthcare infrastructure.