Maria Brito: Family shares touching tribute to 3-year-old girl who died after scorpion bit her in sleep
Maria Brito is the second Brazilian child to die from a scorpion bite in more than a month
RIBAS DO RIO PARDO, BRAZIL: A three-year-old girl died from a scorpion bite as she slept at her home in Brazil, marking the country's second such child fatality in more than a month.
After being stung on September 25, Maria Brito was admitted to the hospital right away. She died from a cardiac arrest on October 1.
Family pays tribute to three-year-old
A family member wrote on social media, "My princess, how much you will be missed,Thank you for your beautiful time here on earth, we love you very much. With a broken heart, see you soon Maria Fernanda," as reported by Daily Mail.
Brito received initial care at the municipal hospital in Ribas do Rio Pardo, her hometown, and was later transferred to the Mato Grosso do Sul Regional Hospital in Campo Grande, where she received antivenom treatment.
City Hall of Ribas do Rio Pardo releases statement
According to a statement from the city hall of Ribas do Rio Pardo, "The weakening of [Brito's] heart muscles ended up causing a cardiorespiratory arrest."
Meanwhile, in separate incidents over the weekend of September 22–25 in Ribas do Rio Pardo, a 45-year-old man and a woman who had also been stung by scorpions survived.
Besides, an eight-year-old boy was also admitted to the hospital after being bitten by a scorpion on September 30.
Brazil's scorpion problem
Brito's death marks the second recent fatality in Ribas do Rio Pardo related to scorpion poisoning, after Pyetro Arguelho died on August 22 from a bite.
On the morning of August 15, as the five-year-old boy was preparing to leave for school, a scorpion bit him inside his shoe. When his condition deteriorated, he was taken by an emergency vehicle to Mato Grosso do Sul Regional Hospital after being treated with antivenom at Ribas do Rio Pardo Municipal Hospital.
The boy's father, Max Jonathan, told Brazilian news outlet G1, "The toxin in the poison was very strong. The doctor said it was still (affecting) his body, it could last up to seven to 10 days. Given his age, it was perhaps a large dose of poison."
Residents of the 23,000-person city of Ribas do Rio Pardo have expressed concern over the scorpion population's growth, which is a result of heat and humidity.
In 2023, 3,012 scorpion bite cases have been reported so far, down from 3,205 the previous year, according to the Mato Grosso do Sul Department of Health.
