Epidemiological survey of scorpion envenomation in southwestern Morocco

The high frequency and severity of scorpion envenomation in Morocco is a serious public health problem, especially in semi arid and arid areas with a large rural population. In view of this alarming situation, we have conducted this investigation on scorpion envenomation in the Haouz and Souss plains between 1994 and 1998. Preliminary results have shown a high rate of scorpion envenomation with several deaths. With the exception of Scorpio maurus, the suspected species are generally anthropophilous, which belong to the Androctonus genera of the Buthidae family. The Buthidae family is responsible for 96.93% of the envenomings. In the southwestern Morocco, the death rate is of about 3.84%. The Androctonus mauretanicus is responsible for 60% of deaths. We show the various therapeutic modalities used by the local populations and propose prophylactic measures, such as awareness and prevention.