A while back I started a thread about almost being bitten by a Diamondback and mentioned that if I had been bitten that I wouldn't have been able to take any antivenin because I'm allergic to papaya and eggs. There was a discussion, and doubt, about the new antivenin being made from papaya and the old type of antivenin being made from eggs, so I asked Dr Bush of the Venom ER series to clarify this for me, and he said "CroFab is made from papain, which is derived from papaya." I also went to a site called eMEDICINE and under Snake Envenomation, Rattle, I went to CroFab and under the warnings it said (in part), to
specifically ask if a patient is allergic to papaya.
I also mentioned to Dr Bush that I thought I heard him say that the old antivenin was made from eggs and he said "Presently, no antivenom is made from eggs." So I'm glad he clarified that for me.
I also asked him what a person's chances are of taking antivenins when they have multiple food/drug and chemical sensitivites and he said, "If a patient needed antivenom and was allergic to any constituent of the medication, a physician would likely take measures to reduce or avoid a severe reaction and proceed with antivenom as necessary after risks, benefits and alternatives were discussed and understood by the patient or the patient's representative (circumstances permitting)." So now I'm more informed, and I thanked him for that.
Just thought I'd pass this on.
MissHisssss
