Every year 2 million or more people fall victim to snakebite envenoming, mostly in poor, rural communities of Africa, Asia and Latin America. Between 83,000—138,000 of them die, while hundreds of thousands more suffer debilitating long-term complications or disabilities.

Although some antivenom medicines are highly effective when used promptly and appropriately, many snakebite victims get no treatment at all. Those who do may receive antivenoms which don’t work against the type of snake that bit them, or were not rigorously tested for safety and effectiveness.

To mark World Snakebite Awareness Day on September 19th, the Collection linked below brings together recent MSF work on this highly neglected disease. Several articles and conference presentations help fill evidence gaps on the burden of disease and its impacts or on treatment outcomes with specific antivenoms in specific regions. Others examine how to tackle the formidable challenges of availability and affordability, the absence of regulatory oversight for making, testing and registering antivenoms, and the anemic R&D pipeline for new products—all of which impede access for patients to safe, effective treatment tailored to local snake species.

MSF Scientific Days in Latin America 2024 focused on two thematic areas:

Climate Emergency in the Americas: What Are We Seeing as a Medical Humanitarian Organization and How Are We Responding?

• MSF has long responded to health crises aggravated by the climate emergency —such as disease outbreaks, food insecurity, and displacement—and these events are intensifying in severity and frequency. This session presented examples of how MSF is adapting to address climate-related emergencies in the region, and explored strategies for future humanitarian action.

Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Interventions in Violence, Migration, and Indigenous Health Projects

• This session explored the complexities of providing mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) in some of the region’s most challenging settings. It focused on interventions in areas affected by violence, the mental health impact on migrants, and the unique needs of indigenous populations. The discussion highlighted innovative strategies, culturally sensitive approaches, and the importance of integrating MHPSS into healthcare projects in these complex settings.