In the week past we’ve seen two cases of spider bite that necessitated antivenom and patients ending up in the Intensive Care unit.
In the Western Cape we are lucky that we really only have to worry about three different species of spider. These are the Button -, Sac – and Violin spiders.
I’ll touch on the Button Spider first as this is the spider that (normally) would need urgent medical attention. We have two different types of button spider in the Western Cape, Brown and Black. The classic features of the button spider is the red hourglass shape on the belly of the spider (see picture). Depending on where in the Western Cape, the Black Button is normally the one that is more prevalent around homes. It is therefor more common to see gardeners etc. being bitten when accidentally squeezing one in the garden. These spiders are NOT aggressive and only bite to defend themselves.
The spider bite can normally not be felt straight away, but the red lesion becomes painful soon after (30-40 mins) can. A clinical syndrome we call Latrodectism then develops soon afterwards which consists of pain, spasms and difficulty breathing. The pain is normally the reason we would give antivenom. If you think you’ve been bitten by a spider, look out for these symptoms and if unsure, please come to the Emergency Room for us to evaluate.
Sac spiders are little brown spiders that bite without notice. They bite unprovoked and cause a nasty little red bite. It is quite common for children to be bitten in their beds at night.
There is very little to do about their bite other than treat skin infection, if it does happen (antibiotics)
In the Western Cape we are lucky that we really only have to worry about three different species of spider. These are the Button -, Sac – and Violin spiders.
I’ll touch on the Button Spider first as this is the spider that (normally) would need urgent medical attention. We have two different types of button spider in the Western Cape, Brown and Black. The classic features of the button spider is the red hourglass shape on the belly of the spider (see picture). Depending on where in the Western Cape, the Black Button is normally the one that is more prevalent around homes. It is therefor more common to see gardeners etc. being bitten when accidentally squeezing one in the garden. These spiders are NOT aggressive and only bite to defend themselves.
The spider bite can normally not be felt straight away, but the red lesion becomes painful soon after (30-40 mins) can. A clinical syndrome we call Latrodectism then develops soon afterwards which consists of pain, spasms and difficulty breathing. The pain is normally the reason we would give antivenom. If you think you’ve been bitten by a spider, look out for these symptoms and if unsure, please come to the Emergency Room for us to evaluate.
Sac spiders are little brown spiders that bite without notice. They bite unprovoked and cause a nasty little red bite. It is quite common for children to be bitten in their beds at night.
There is very little to do about their bite other than treat skin infection, if it does happen (antibiotics)
Then there is the Violin Spider (see picture below). They are recluse spiders and only bite to defend themselves. I’ve not seen one of these spiders myself and have never definitely treated a bite from these. The treatment stays the same as with the sac spider, conservative and antibiotics if infection develops.
There are a lot of scary stories out there, but this is in essence what you need to know. For the people wondering about Rain Spiders, they are big and scary, but a nasty sting is the most you can expect from them (unless a skin infection develops). Again, they are not aggressive and only bite when provoked.
Keep safe out there!
Keep safe out there!
Posted in Tips