What are snake bites?

Also known as: venomous and nonvenomous snake bites.

Snakes usually bite when they feel threatened and may be venomous (poisonous) or non-venomous. The most common venomous snakes (about 10%) in the USA include rattlesnakes, copperheads, water moccasin (or cottonmouth). These account for more than 95% of all venomous snake bites and coral snakes. Not all venomous snake bites result in the poison being injected in the child’s body (this is called a “dry bite”). Most snake bites in the USA occur between April and October.

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Reviewed by: Jack Wolfsdorf, MD, FAAP

This page was last updated on: 1/29/2019 3:21:13 PM