Pain in the Bite

​A 14-year-old boy with no past medical history was brought to the ED in some distress by his parents. One hour earlier while looking for his baseball glove in the garage he had felt a small pinprick just above his right ankle. The patient, however, became increasingly uncomfortable and began complaining of diffuse abdominal pain.​His initial vital signs were a temperature of 97°F, heart rate of 112 bpm, blood pressure of 151/91 mm Hg, and 98% pulse oximetry on room air. He appeared uncomfortable, was diaphoretic, and had a rigid abdomen. A small puncture wound with some mild erythema to the lateral right ankle was noted.Poisonous Spiders in the United States-The black widow (Latrodectus spider) is the most commonly reported spider envenomation in the United States, and is involved in more than 2,500 calls to poison control centers annually. (Perm J 2011;15[3]:76.) The 8-10 mm females are identified as being shiny and black with a ventral red hourglass on their belly. Males may be smaller with a white and gray marking and a less prominent hourglass. There are five Latrodectus spiders in the country, with Latrodectus mactans and variolus (predominantly in the southern and eastern states) being the two main ones.-The brown recluse spider or the Fiddleback spider contains a violin-shaped marking on its cephalothorax. Bites are uncommon and likely overdiagnosed. When bites occur, a dermonecrotic lesion can develop over hours and progress over weeks. They are mainly found...
Source: The Tox Cave - Category: Emergency Medicine Tags: Blog Posts Source Type: blogs