CONE SNAIL TOXICITY

Course overview

BOTH EXPERIENCED AND NOVICE SCUBA DIVERS ARE DRAWN TO WARM, TROPICAL SEAS, BUT WHEN TRAVELING TO THESE AREAS, DIVERS MUST TAKE ADDITIONAL PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES TO AVOID PREDATORS SPECIFIC TO THESE ENVIRONMENTS. FOR EXAMPLE, THESE INDIVIDUALS MUST RECOGNIZE THE DANGER OF THE CONUS GENUS, WHICH INCLUDES OVER 500 DIFFERENT SPECIES OF PREDATORY SNAILS. WHILE HUMANS ARE NOT THE INTENDED PREY FOR THESE MOLLUSKS, NAIVE DIVERS MAY INADVERTENTLY PICK UP THE CONE SNAILS. CONE SNAIL VENOM IS SO POTENT THAT IT CAN IMMEDIATELY PARALYZE AND EVENTUALLY KILL PREY. HYPOTHETICALLY, THE VENOM FROM ONE CONE SNAIL HAS COULD KILL UP TO 700 PEOPLE. THIS ACTIVITY REVIEWS THE EVALUATION AND MANAGEMENT OF CONE SHELL ENVENOMATION, AND HIGHLIGHTS THE ROLE OF THE INTERPROFESSIONAL TEAM IN MANAGING CARE FOR AFFLICTED PATIENTS.