antivenom

antivenom

Antivenin Toxicology A vehicle that contains an antibody or other substance that binds specifically to a toxin, deactivating it

McGraw-Hill Concise Dictionary of Modern Medicine. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

antivenin

, antivenene, antivenom (ant″i-ven′ĭn) (ant″ve″nēn′) (ant″ven′ŏm) [ anti- + venin, venom]

A serum that contains antitoxin specific for an animal or insect venom. Antivenin is prepared from the sera of immunized animals.

Patient care

Antivenins are foreign proteins that often induce allergic reactions in patients who receive them. The likelihood of allergic reactions is reduced by prior administration of epinephrine.

black widow spider antivenin

Antitoxic serum obtained from horses immunized against the venom of the black widow spider (Latrodectus mactans) and used specifically to treat bites of the black widow spider. The serum is available from Merck Co., Inc., West Point, PA 19486.

(Crotalidae) polyvalent antivenin

Anti-snakebite serum obtained from serum of horses immunized against venom of four types of pit vipers of the family Crotalidae: Crotalus atrox, C. adamanteus, C. terrificus, and Bothrops atrox .

Medical Dictionary, © 2009 Farlex and Partners

antivenom

See ANTIVENENE.

Collins Dictionary of Medicine © Robert M. Youngson 2004, 2005