An Idaho man needed so much antivenom after a rattlesnake bite that the hospital treating him eventually ran out of the medication. Chris Howarth was bitten twice while visiting his parents in California and spent 12 days hospitalized as doctors worked to manage complications caused by the venom.
According to SFGATE, Howarth was transferred via helicopter from Oroville Hospital to Stanford Hospital after the first facility ran out of antivenom while treating him. Before the transfer, he had already received 36 doses at Oroville. Doctors at Stanford continued his care with additional antivenom, giving him another 18 doses before he was eventually discharged.
The encounter unfolded in late May while Howarth was in his parents’ Oroville backyard checking a waterline. He did not immediately realize what had happened, initially believing he had stepped on a sharp plant or thorn before noticing the rattlesnake nearby. His wife, Jenny Howarth, said one of the two bites was deeper than the other, allowing the venom to enter his bloodstream.
Chris feared for his life
After arriving at Oroville Hospital, Howarth began showing signs of a reaction to the venom, including a numb tongue, swollen lymph nodes and difficulty breathing. Although he received antivenom within about an hour, his symptoms continued to return throughout his hospital stay.
Doctors later diagnosed him on the third day with disseminated intravascular coagulation, a condition that affects the body’s ability to control blood clotting. By the sixth day of his hospitalization, Oroville Hospital had exhausted its antivenom supply, prompting his transfer to Stanford Hospital for continued treatment. It did not take long for dark thoughts to enter Howarth’s head…