Scorpion sting kills Brazilian girl, hospital lacked antivenom

A five year old Brazilian girl lost her life after being stung by a yellow scorpion, one of the most venomous insects in South America. Despite her family’s efforts to get the child immediate medical attention, they faced an hour-long delay when the first hospital they visited lacked the proper serum to treat the child.

The ordeal of the child, Jamily Vitoria Duarte, started when she was stung by the deadly insect causing her to groan and cry in excruciating pain. Her mother, Patricia das Gracas Adriana Duarte, rushed her to the Vila Cristina medical centre in Piracicaba, Brazil.

Knowing that time is of the essence in deadly scorpion stings, the family was dismayed to face an hour-long wait in the emergency room. After searching, the doctors revealed they did not have any supply of the required antivenom serum to treat Jamily.

The panicked and frustrated family had no choice but to rush to a secondary hospital to get the needed treatment before time ran out for their five year old. Their mother explained the race against time.

“When we reached Santa Casa Hospital, the doctors struggled to find her vein. She was deteriorating, and around 2am, she further deteriorated and went into cardiac arrest, passing away at approximately 8am.”

Despite the lacklustre response from the first hospital that led to critical time loss, the Secretary of State for Health claimed it was equipped with the serum for treating yellow scorpion stings. He is calling for an immediate investigation while the bereaved mother laments that the serum definitely wasn’t onsite, and her daughter might be alive had they known sooner.

“She arrived screaming, desperate. Everyone was paralysed. She said it was a scorpion sting, but they took my data calmly. If they had informed us that they didn’t have the serum, we could have taken her to Santa Casa sooner.”

Unfortunately, such incidents aren’t rare. Reports of scorpion stings causing fatalities in Egypt have recently surfaced, with the pouring rains causing the insects to seek shelter in homes. Over 500 reported stinging incidents were reported recently, three of which ended in death.

An Air India passenger was reportedly stung mid-flight, fortunately receiving prompt medical attention. And in Thailand, a woman was stung by a scorpion hiding in a fruit bag.