Brown Recluse Spider Bites - Now is the time to spray your house! (graphic pictures)

myself ^ | 5/9/03 | brigette

[stlnative]

This is a semi-vanity post - but others should learn about this nasty little spider and the damage it can do.

This is my 3rd day into my second Brown Recluse Spider bite that I have had in the past 3 years. The first one took over 6 months to heal and left a 3/4" diameter crater in the back of my neck at my hairline. I was bitten again 3 days ago, at least that is when I notice a pin head size bump on my right forearm and thought it was just a mosquito bite. Today is day three and I decided to keep a record of this new bite this time if it decides to get worse or hang around for 6 months like the other one. It was pin head size 3 days ago. I found a website after my first bite that keeps records and case pictures of brown recluse spider bites (warning if you think snake bites are nasty or anthrax sores are gross - well Brown Spider Bites are just as bad - they get uglier as time goes by!). I did not record my first bite as I figured it would just heal. But it got worse and worse as the weeks went by.

Anyway people in the midwest should learn about these nasty little spiders, even more if you have kids... you should bug bomb your house often and keep clutter away from and inside your homes. Right now the little nasty things are moving back indoors due to all the rainy weather we have had in the midwest.

Today is 5/9/03 and I am into my 3 day of being bitten by BRS (Brown Recluse Spider). My picture below looks like it is not much of anything and I am hoping that it stays as little as it now. But I am prepared to record it this time if it does get worse. Hopefully my picture of my 3 day old bite will help others recognize when they have also been bitten by a BRS, everyone is affected differently depending on the size of the spider and how your body handle the poison. Since this is my second bite it may not get any worse.



I have started a bite history on a website that has records of over 400 BRS bites (tons of photos there that would make your jaw drop if you have never seen what a BRS can do to you once it bites you) My case number is #995 (maybe they have 995 recorded cases now) the website url is http://www.highway60.com/mark/brs/default.htm

My little bite is how all of it starts for some people, that little bite can turn into this...
Graphic Picture of Hand after a BRS bite and the link to this persons BRS bite story

I don't think I need to say more here - just visit the BRS Bite site and use the search link at the top... Put in the information you want (if you just want to see the stories with pictures check off just the "Yes" next to the Picture option and hit the search button at the bottom.

Do yourself a favor and your kids a favor... spray or bomb your house at least once each season (spring, summer, fall, winter). You can buy house bombs at any local discount store in packs of 3 for about $6.00.

I posted this so that people mainly in the midwest can learn about these nasty little spiders, I didn't do it to draw attention to my own bite... I just know now how nasty they can get and how you can lessen your chances of being bit. I got bit before I had a chance to bomb my house... it has been rainy here and I should have known they would start coming in through the cracks between the window screens and window frame. All in all I should be fine, but some people do not fair as well.

[VOA]

I have a serious case of arachnophobia and that picture creeps me out

While it's a real long-shot that you'd meet up with a brown recluse in Mass., I learned
after my encounter that this nasty (and surely other crawlers) are really
expanding their ranges, given modern transport and warehousing.

I remember reading about a Vietnam Vet who explained why he deserted the lower
48 states for Alaska after his tour of duty:
"No more bugs and snakes for me".
(I guess he didn't worry about those summer-time biting flies!)

[kcvl]

Spider victim’s choice: surgery or lawn mower or ?


by Morgan Voorhis
of the Sierra Star

---

. Two years ago, Don Crisp visited Oakhurst Community Medical Center’s Urgent Care Unit because of a slight inflammation at his beltline. Medical staff told him it was simply a large inflamed pimple. No big deal.

A week later, that large “pimple” had grown to a diameter of four inches. The area was swollen, scabbed and had a dark circle in the center. Mr. Crisp made a bee-line back to the Oakhurst facility.

Fortunately, a doctor who worked at Yosemite Urgent Care and specialized in toxicology, spotted his exposed abdomen, and from across the room, recognized the pimple for what it was — a brown recluse (pronounced wreck-loose) spider bite.

Things happened quickly for the Oakhurst resident. Because there are no known antibiotics to stop the poison from spreading, Mr. Crisp was advised to see a surgeon.

Removal of the diseased flesh was the only solution, he was told. However, instead of laying under a surgeon’s knife, Mr. Crisp found himself hooked to a lawn mower.

A lawn mower?!?

“Don Bray, a friend of mine, had a doctor friend in Texas, who used a modified stun gun for treatment of insect and snake bites,” says Mr. Crisp.

Sheets of information explaining the procedure were faxed to his emergency room physician, Marland Hansen.

Apparently, a high-voltage, low-current shock to the wounded area neutralizes the poisons, which the body then absorbs.

Mr. Crisp was game for anything. Since he had no stun gun, he improvised and used the next best thing at hand. His lawn mower.

“I hooked up two leads,” he says, “one to the spark plug wire and the other to the head of the lawn mower engine. Then I took the leads and positioned them around the spider bite.

“My wife pulled the crank on the lawn mower, with the spark plug out so it wouldn’t start, and I got the electrical charge.”

While the shock was somewhat painful, “it was bearable,” he adds.

Bearable and successful. After three “treatments,” Mr. Crisp stopped the poison from spreading. The wound healed and the discoloration paled.

“Within an hour of the first treatment, all the burning, itching, and tingling went away,” says Mr. Crisp. “And within a short period of time, the swelling went down.”

Because of this, Mr. Crisp was well prepared for what happened six months later.

He was bit again, this time on the ankle. He immediately had his suspicion confirmed by his doctor, and went home to hook himself up to his lawn mower.

“And it went away almost over night. The longer you wait before you receive the treatment, the longer it takes to work,” explains Mr. Crisp.

The brown recluse spider, also known as the violin spider because of the markings on its back, falls under the same category as the black widow — dangerous.

The main difference is that there is an anti-venom for the black widow spider bite. Victims of the brown recluse spider bite aren’t nearly as fortunate.

While doctors treat the bite with steroid drugs, antibiotics and antihistamines, it usually has little or no effect.

Venom from the generally painless bite can destroy flesh and muscle, create deep ulcers, and cause persistent flu-like symptoms.

In some cases, a skin graft is necessary to repair the damaged area of skin around the bite.

Once in the bloodstream, the powerful venom can also cause hemolysis, a breakdown of red blood cells, that sometimes leads to liver or kidney failure.

The recluse, which is common in the southern and western United States, is brown to tan in color, with a darker “violin” shape on its back.

Its body is about a quarter to a half-inch long, with a leg span ranging from nickel-size to quarter-size, and it has six eyes.

The spider spins thick, irregular webs and prefers dark, warm places and dusty corners. When frightened, it often bites and runs. The female is more poisonous than the male.

While it prefers making its home within our homes, the spider likes out-of-the-way spaces, especially attics, basements, or closets and dresser drawers that aren’t opened often. Outside the house, it hides in rock or leaf piles.

Even though it’s been two years since Mr. Crisp has had too-close contact with a recluse, he now feels it is his obligation to pass his knowledge on. What prompted this decision was spotting one of his friends out shopping.

He was dressed in pants, with one pant leg hanging loosely. The other screamed at the seams, as though his leg would break free any moment, recalls Mr. Crisp.

“He got bit by a brown recluse on the ankle one year ago,” explains Mr. Crisp. “The wound is still open and still draining. He’s been to doctor after doctor, tried antibiotic after antibiotic, but nothing helps. And now, he’s about to lose his leg. I thought to myself, ‘what can I do to help him?’ It just broke my heart.”

Mr. Crisp offered his lawn mower treatment, and his friend promised to try it.

Most people express stronger reactions to this unorthodox alternative, such as “You’ve got to be kidding.”

But Mr. Crisp assures that he finds this topic no-joking matter.

In fact, there are medical studies and cases showing that direct high-voltage current shock is effective in arresting the poison from spreading.

There have been many confirmed or suspected spider bites that have been treated via this method.

In each case, the first treatment ended the tissue damage, and none of the cases required excision or graft.

Multiple shocks of one-to-two seconds were used. In the more severe cases, added shocks were administered. It was important to have a grounding wire on the opposite side of the limb or across the inflamed area so that the shock could reach the depths of the bite.

Take heed that, because most venoms contain enzymes that promote the spread of the venom, direct injection into the bite site is strongly advised against. To do so allows the poison to spread through each needle track.

“The shock treatment is a simple solution. It’s non-threatening,” says Mr. Crisp. “Did you know that missionaries in Africa take cattle prods to do the same thing?”

Dr. Hansen, a physician practicing family medicine, agrees with Mr. Crisp that cattle prods are effective tools in arresting the poison.

“You can use lawn mowers, stun guns, electric cattle prods,” says Dr. Hansen, “anything that gives a sudden blast of high voltage, but with a very low current. That way you don’t get burned, only mildly shocked.”

Dr. Hansen was unaware of this treatment until the day he examined Mr. Crisp at Urgent Care. That’s the day he learned a great deal on shock treatment for the bite.

“This is done around the world,” says Dr. Hansen. “In 1992, the American College of Emergency Physicians tried it on 50 people, and they said that they couldn’t tell if it did any good or not. So they don’t recommend it. Nor do they forbid it.”

While Dr. Hansen has never spotted a brown recluse and has only seen six sores that he was reasonably sure were caused by the spider bite in 33 years, he admits that many doctors don’t know what to attribute the blackened ulcerated area to at first glance.

“I had a very good friend who had one on his leg and he saw five different doctors,” he says.

“And while he was back in Michigan, the doctors there had never seen anything like it and thought it was cancer. So they cut it out and left a hole in his leg, which they later grafted,” the doctor says.

“Right away, the pathologist said it wasn’t cancer, but necrotic or dead tissue,” continues Dr. Hansen. “Cutting it out cured him, but also left him with a huge scar.”

In those rare instances when Dr. Hansen does come across a victim of the brown recluse, he now recommends shock, not only to patients, but friends or acquaintances.

“And if I was bit, I’d try it myself,” admits Dr. Hansen. “It’s just hard to refute the evidence. Don had it for weeks, started shocking himself and in days, he was better.”

For those still skeptical, Mr. Crisp reiterates that people in third-world countries regularly use this method, which leads him to ask: “Why do we have our heads in the sand in the United States?”

Symptoms

If you are bit, you may feel a little sting but usually little if any pain.

After a few hours, you will begin to feel pain that may range from mild to severe. You will notice a rash and then a blister forming at the place you were bitten.

You may also feel weak and nauseous, begin to vomit , become feverish or have chills.

If you do not get medical treatment for the bite, the rash will spread, and the center will turn hard and dark. Then your skin will break open and ooze.

Without medical treatment, sooner or later, your red blood cells will begin to die.

What to do

Use an antiseptic around the bite and place an ice pack over it. Then get to your physician as quickly as possible.

Precautions to take

Shake out clothes and blankets you have not worn or used for a while.

Be careful around areas where you have seen spiders before.

When working in the attic, basement, or other spider-friendly areas, wear protective clothing, such as long pants, long-sleeved shirt or gloves.
Don’t leave piles of old newspapers and clothes in attics or basements.

Regularly clean-up out-of-the- way places inside the house, especially areas behind furniture and inside closets.

If you discover a violin spider, treat your home with an insecticide containing lindane, following label instructions and precautions.

Some of the information used in this story was taken from the Oklahoma State Medical Association, Volume 83, January 1990; and Good Housekeeping, April 1993.

[dagoofyfoot]

I live in So Cal, but not in the area on the map below


So What Happened???

I live in So Cal too, on the coast. Do we have to worry about these little viscious demons?

Man, that dude's hand was creeping me out!

[sweetliberty]

"I have seen more bugs in Fl than I ever cared to know existed"

Yes, Florida definitely has more than its share of nasty crawling things. I remember 3 different instances on 2 separate trips (all at the same campground, however) involving some of Florida's "exotic" creatures.

Case #1: My daughter was about 8 years old and we were camping near Disney World. She apparently (according to locals) had been bitten on her face by some kind of spider that resembles a dandelion seed. She spent the next couple of days looking like she'd been punched in the eye.

Case #2: Same trip. We were trying to decide whether to stay over one more night at the campground. As I got out of the tent and went to zip it up, I saw, not 2 inches from my hand, on the flap of the tent, a scorpion. Needless to say, the decision was a no-brainer after that. I never realized that Florida had scorpions. Until that time, I had always thought of them as desert dwellers.

Case #3: Same campground; 2 or 3 years later. We got in kinda late at night and went to set up camp. There was a tree on the site with a a long piece of what appeared to be fishing line. Turned out to be part of a spider web. Not wanting to meet the critter that made it, we decided to find a different site. LOL!

Lots of luck fighting the bugs down there. I mean, they can be pretty bad throughoput the south, but Florida is ridiculous. If some of the bugs got much bigger you could ride them.

[dagoofyfoot]

My skull became visible in the worst one


Gnarrly!!!

[kcvl]

Modified Stun Gun

---

Carl D. Osborn, M.D. (deceased)

Dr. Osborn wrote 3 papers on the treatment of spider bites. They were published in the The Journal of the Oklahoma State Medical Association. Below are excerpts from the articles and a Tulsa World newspaper article.

Treatment of Venomous Bite by High Voltage Direct Current - January 1990
Treatment of Spider Bites by High Voltage Direct Current - June 1991
Multiple HVDC Shocks as First Aid or Therapy for Venomous Bites and Stings - July 1992
Physician Pulls Stun Gun to Treat Spider Bites - By David Blum, Tulsa World, Sunday, July 28, 1991.

---

Dr. Carl Osborn states the unconventional treatment of using a stun gun neutralizes the venom before it can destroy tissue and cause scarring. Tissue damage caused by the venom is stopped at the time of the treatment, and pain and other symptoms usually are improved within 15 minutes.
Although others disagree, Osborn believes that standard treatments, which involve the injection of medication into a bite, spread the venom and increase tissue loss and scarring. The shock treatment neutralizes the venom before it can damage tissue. The unproven theory as to why the treatment works is that metallic components in venom are altered when blasted with high current.

To treat a bite, the doctor attaches an extension wire to one terminal on the stun gun. That wire is placed on the skin on the opposite side of the arm or leg where the bite is located. The other terminal is placed directly on the lesion, coursing the jolt through the bite area. Next, shocks are administered across the bite in a spoke pattern to cover any areas in which the venom may still be active. Antibiotics and tetanus boosters are administered when required.

Osborn stresses that only DC, or direct current, from a stun gun powered by a nine-volt battery be used.

[Temple Drake]

these can live MUCH further north than the map indicates. My family encountered one at a very remote resort in Minnesota -- luckily we spotted it as we opened a sleeper-sofa, screamed, killed it and did NOT let our little daughters sleep in the sofa that night!

[stlnative]

You will know... It will get bigger as time goes by, the center area of skin will die and you will have a pit in your skin. It may stay small or it may even take a month to get very large. Just keep an eye on it and stop playing with that damn taser! (the bites affect people differently)

[kcvl]

A look at complimentary treatment of Brown Recluse Spider bites.



Welcome to my page of venomous bite treatments. This page will continually be changing as additional information is added, so check it out often.

I hope that this information will help you in your search for something that is apparently lacking in the general information field.

A large portion of the population will come in contact with a venomous creature at some time in their lifetime. This may be nothing more than a bee sting or fire ant bite but if you have a high degree of sensitivity it can be devastating.

What I have found is that this simple first aid treatment of venomous bites from whatever source, may be all the treatment needed to resolve the problem.

As you read some of the case histories you may find something that you can relate to. Feel free to share this information with others and particularly your caregiver.

I have practiced medicine since 1973 in both Family Practice and Emergency Medicine, and have found this treatment to be very effective. I will admit that I had my doubts at first but seeing dramatic results is a strong stimulus to change your mind.

This site last updated: 11/7/02


http://www.sabramsmd.com/brs/brsmain.html

[auggy]

Thanks for the info, Brigette. We have had these little suckers for 3 years. I live in KY. I am 10 miles fron Indiana border and 30 miles from the ILL. border. I haven't yet sprayed this year. I have a garage I work in, which is located behind my house. It is loaded with Recluse's. Some are hugh. No one has ever been bitten by one. They are not afraid of you. They will not back down, even if you poke a stick at them. I have even had them to jump at a stick I was poking them with. Scared the hell out of me. I work in my garage daily and am lying on a creeper alot. I don't like the fact I am down at their level, so to speak.

[kcvl]

This picture was taken 72 hours after the bite.

This picture was taken 8 weeks after the bite.

[Exit148]

"What happens when you have your house bombed? Do you have to wash all exposed surfaces -- for instance dishes?//// No, in the above instance, its usually the dishes that are the first to go and totaly impossible to recover....."

You are tooooo much! LOL!

[SoCal Pubbie]

Thanx for the graphic pic. I was bite on my butt...yes the back side ,by what "I thought" was a BRS. Actually a Doctor diagnosed it, but it looked nothing like your pics.
It only got pussy and very sensitive. I eventually had it lanced. All along my doubting husband didnt think it was a BRS, but it made a better story than "it was a zit",
so I went with it. Now he found your info. an proved my story wrong. Oh well, it was interesting while it lasted,
and I'm able to sit again! Hope you heal fast!

[dagoofyfoot]

My favorite method to kill spiders is using Aqua Net--The super hold stuff.


I had a big spider in a corner of the bathroom frozen in place for a few years...and believe it or not, after all this time his hair still looks great!

[xJones]

You've been really lucky, but thanks to Brigette and her thread, I'd bet a lot of people have been warned.

Valuable thread, Brigette. (Arachnoidia delenda est!)

[VOA]

Hopefully, it will go away quickly, and I'll never know for sure whether it was a
brown recluse bite and/or if the taser took care of a potentially nasty problem.

Two suggestions from my experience with the brown recluse:

Don't wait too long. Get to a doctor (preferably one you see regularly).
Even if the doctor doesn't think it's too bad, try to get the doctor to give you
a single prescription of a general antibiotic (e.g., Keflex)...to go in your refrierator
and only to be taken if your wound gets worse and you get a fever (sign of
nasty infection).

I'm not an M.D., but my experience tells me that having that "just in case" antibiotic
(and using it judiciously) can save you a world of trouble (e.g., compromised
circulation in a limb from a hideous infection).
And getting antibiotics on-board at the first sign of a fever doesn't seem
like a bad idea (no matter all the current concern about super-bug bacteria).

[kcvl]

ROFLOL!

[Hildy]

My cousin was bitten by one here in San Diego...I swear. It was the first time I'd ever even heard of the damn thing.

[Hildy]

My cousin was bitten by one here in San Diego...I swear. It was the first time I'd ever even heard of the damn thing.

[kcvl]

Notice the chronic wound of a brown recluse spider bite.

This wound is over 2 years old and never healed in spite of multiple attempts with antibiotics. The wound had a chronic drainage and was very painful to touch. The pain was so intense that the patient was forced to take blood pressure medication to control the hypertension caused by pain

Within 3 hours after electric shock, the drainage had stopped. Within 1 week the patient was able to stop her blood pressure medicine as the pain was gone.

Patient has been lost to follow up as she is in another part of the state.