India is home to a number of venomous species. Every year in harvesting season, a large number of productive citizens are envenomed by such species. For efficient medical management of the victims, identification of the aggressor species as well as assessment of the envenomation degree is necessary. Species identification is generally based on the visual description by the victim or a witness and is therefore quite likely to be erroneous. Symptomatic identification remains the only available method. In a previous published work, the authors proposed a classification table for snake species based on manifested symptoms applicable in Indian subcontinent. The classification table serves the purpose to a great deal but as a manual method it demands human expertise. The current paper presents a neural network-based symptomatic species identification system. A symptom vector is fed as input to the neural network and the system yields the most probable species as well as the envenomation severity as the output. The severity status can be very helpful in calculating the antivenom dosage and in deciding the species-specific prognostic measures for efficient medical management.

Snakebites, being the major occupational hazard for farm workers, claim a large number of lives in the Indian subcontinent. During the course of medical management, identification of the biting species is given a low priority, resorting to prescription of polyvalent anti-snake venom. Whereas the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends monospecific anti-snake venom instead of polyvalent anti-snake venom. Thus, it is essential to identify the aggressor species either by a visual inspection or by the symptoms of the victim. Along with the four deadly venomous species (cobra, krait, Russell's viper, and saw-scaled viper), there are a number of other species of medical importance, whose venoms and bites have not been paid much attention. Thus, a misclassification resulting into erroneous treatment cannot be ruled out. This paper discusses the nature, constitution, and toxicity of venoms and their possible toxic effects on victims of snakebites. An attempt has also been made to categorize the distinctive symptoms due to the bites of the four major venomous species and their severity grading.