Posted on 03/13/2009 5:25:56 AM PDT by LibWhacker
He's been confined to a wheelchair for 20 years. Now a paraplegic man is walking again. And his doctors call it a miracle. CBS13 went to Manteca to find out how a spider bite helped get him back on his feet.
"I closed my eyes and then I was spinning like a flying saucer," explains David Blancarte.
A motorcycle accident almost killed David 21 years ago. At the time he might have wished he was dead.
"I asked my doctor, "sir what happened?' I can't feel my legs," said David.
Ever since, David's been relying on his wheelchair to get around. Then the spider bite. A Brown Recluse sent him to the hospital, then to rehab for eight months.
"I'm here for a spider bite. I didn't know I would end up walking," says David.
A nurse noticed David's leg spasm and ran a test on him.
"When they zapped my legs, I felt the current, I was like whoa and I yelled," he says.
He felt the current and the rush of a renewed sense of hope.
"She says,'your nerves are alive. They're just asleep," explained David.
Five days later David was walking.
"I was walking on the bar back and forth," he said.
Now David is out of the hospital and on his feet and walking.
David basks in his glory and gives a ray of hope to other hoping to walk again. The 48-year-old former boxer and dancer are taking it in stride, knowing his best days are still ahead.
David's dream is to see his 14-year-old twin daughters grow up and get married so he can walk them down the aisle and have that first dance.
“I wonder if anyone has experimented with spider venom
or other venom for nerve “awakening””
You beat me! That was my question too....
Yeah, I think it is called socceeeeeeeeer!
a brown recluse holds more prmice than ESR
Spider Man is NOT gay!
A good reason to leave an unused bed unmade. BTW: “Making your bed” prevents drying of the bedding after it’s been slept in, leading to a higher population of dust mites. Always glad to strike a blow against compulsive neatness.
A mate of mine in Sydney is a recognized expert on Funnelweb Spiders, and has helped to classify a number of sub-species. Self-educated: when he’s not chasing spiders he’s a chippie who liks to surf and go fishing.
The male of the species is particularly aggressive during mating season.
Here in Auckand we have a Tunnelweb Spider: it too is aggressive, with a nasty bite, but non-toxic to humans.
Wow! God’s creation is awesome!
cute!
Gotta save this one too!
Wow, just think what he would be able to do if he had beeen bitten by an iguana. Maybe...levitate?
Very doubtful any National health care system would spend any money to conduct follow up research on this serendipitous medical miracle...
...too narrow focused. After all... the big dollars mush be spent on the appointed medical managers who can get out the vote.
> My Gawd, I Google’d up some images of that brute, and it might be non-toxic, but I’ll bet it can scare someone to death! Yow!
I’ve got one right in front of me now, actually — she’s a big Tunnelweb, shiny black and very “muscular-looking”, if that makes any sense at all. Very powerful animal, this spider.
I was bitten by one a couple years ago. It was its last dying act of defiance, having hidden in one of my Patrol boots just when I needed to put them on. The bite felt like a hornet sting and I swore a lot and my foot smarted mightily for half a week — so while they aren’t venomous to humans their toxins aren’t merely there for decoration.
There is only one native spider in NZ that is poisonous: the Katipo. It lives in the scrub near sand dunes and is very rare: it would be a rare privilege to get bitten by one. While they are poisonous, they are like Pacific Coast Rattlesnakes in that their venom isn’t often fatal to humans.
We do get the occasional redback spider from Australia as well: it is alot like the Black Widow that you have over there.
To me, boxing is like a ballet, except there's no music, no choreography, and the dancers hit each other. --Jack Handey
Brown recluse. Nasty little buggers.
Exactly! I imagine there are hundreds of different compounds. Maybe the venom doesn't simply shut down the nerves but actually makes them start growing. Perhaps when nerves are actively growing, they are shut down by default? But the spider doesn't know that. And he doesn't care. All he wants is for his prey to stop squirming long enough for him to eat it. Nature gave him a venom that works and so he's happy. Who knew it works because it kick starts nerves back into grow mode?
This is all total speculation on my part, of course, but I agree with you that researchers should be taking a long hard look at all kinds of different venoms. And I think they are, but they should definitely keep at it! There are some mysteries there.
Good question! It seems like such an obvious line of inquiry now that we have this example where someone’s paralysis was perhaps mitigated by spider venom. But I don’t know if it would’ve been obvious before. It certainly would not have been obvious to me. But researchers in the field? I’ll wager they’ve been all over this possibility for some time. See also my comments in #57 above. I think it’s all very fascinating.
I’ve heard about those bad boys! Gives me the chills! What is it with Australia and all the venomous animals down under? I’ve heard that every snake is venomous. Is that true? I know they have some of the most deadly snakes in the world. Brrrrrrrrr...
Wow, great medical miracle. Hopefully the doctors can figure why this happened and give hope to others.
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