They’re creepy, crawly and even though you may not see them, spiders
are in our homes and apartments, everyday. Protecting your family from
spider bites may not be an easy task.
“Spider bites occur during the warm weather months, April through
October,” says Gary Wasserman, DO, chief of Medical Toxicology at
Children’s Mercy Hospitals and Clinics. “Most household spiders are
harmless; however, within Kansas and Missouri there are two spiders to
watch out for – the brown recluse and the black widow.”
Black Widow spiders are actually rather docile, so you have to
really disturb them to get bitten, Dr. Wasserman says. Brown recluse
spiders hunt for food and although not usually aggressive, they will
defend themselves when threatened, he says.
“There is no simple way to identify a spider bite from the thousands
of other biting/stinging creatures,” says Dr. Wasserman. “It is unusual
to receive more than one bite from a spider unless you slap at it.”
To identify a spider bite look for a few features:
- Black Widow spiders cause local pain and muscle stiffness as well
as mild redness and rarely sweating or muscle twitching at the bite
site.
- Brown recluse spiders cause local skin death. Symptoms include
black dead skin tingling, redness, tenderness, which leads to bruising
look that darkens and makes a hole or burn-like black area.
- In extreme cases, bites from brown recluse spiders can cause life-
threatening problems that would cause red blood cells to burst
(hemolysis) and/or clotting abnormalities; so if unusual
bruising/bleeding or red urine is present, see a doctor
immediately.
Treatment
- Cleanse the bite site
- Make sure your Tetanus vaccinations are up-to-date, if bitten.
- If needed, use anti-itching medicine
- Never put ice or heat on a brown recluse bite since it might cause
further damage to the tissues.
- Use a cool compress to the bite site to ease itching and relieve
pain
- If signs and symptoms worsen, contact a medical
professional immediately
Prevention
- Conduct routine spraying of your home
- Keep your home clean and free of clutter
- Avoid keeping clothes on the floor
- Keep bed linens/blankets from touching the floor
