Brown Recluse Spider Bite??????

[grapeman]

For you southern people out there, does anyone have any experience with a brown recluse spider bit? This is a strange question from someone who lives near the Canadian border in Upstate NY. One of the boys got bitten by something yesterday like a spider bit. Within hours it had swollen up to about a quarter inch high raised area a couple inches across. His arm has a mottled greenish color around that area. By today, he was feeling sick so he laid down. When he got up two hours later the area had grown a lot to about 4 inches across and there is an oozing sore in the middle of it a half inch across. He and my son went to the Emergency Room, where they said they were greeted right away and a stream of doctors kept coming in to examine it. All three of them say it looks like the textbook pictures of the Brown Recluse. We have none around here which is the mystery. They are treating it as such and he has to go in daily to have it monitored for growth and furthe skin tissue death and loss. They have sent pictures and samples to the CDC.

He realized that two days ago just before he got bit, that somebody had brought two of his leather coats home from Florida for him and they were in the car. It looks like they had a stowaway on them from the south where they are native.

Do any of you guys from Florida or the other southern states have any experience with this?

 

[DirtyDawg10]

Yikes! Good luck...hope everything goes well.

 

[Brent2489]

Better get it taken care of!!!

http://www.brownreclusespider.org/

 

[Boatboy24]

No experience personally, but glad you got him to a doc. A brown recluse bite can be devastating. I ran across what I thought might be one last summer. Didn't waste any time confirming its identity - it died in a hurry. Not taking any chances with two little ones running around the yard.

 

[nursejohn]

The possibility of coming up from Florida in the coat sure sounds right to me. We do see those here in Texas. He did the right thing going to see a physician. If it is a brown recluse bite, he may be on antibiotics for a few days and he does need to watch the tissue closely to make sure that it doesn't start to become necrotic. Hope this all goes well. Keep us updated. I will surely put him in my prayers also, John.

 

[ibglowin]

Wow not good. Glad you got help fast as that is of utmost importance with those bites. Keep us posted Rich. Hope they can get it neutralized quickly.

 

[grapeman]

Yes he is on antibiotics already and it is slightly infected already. Weird things go on around our house!

 

[Runningwolf]

Thanks for the update Rich. I here people talk about them all the time and the rare possibility that they could be around here. It must be when they are transported in like you talked about.

 

[Deezil]

My dad had a brown recluse bite a few years back on his pinky finger.. He was out picking wild mushrooms and one was on the underside of the shroom and got him. Swelled up pretty good, like you mentioned... Lasted a few months, but eventually went back to normal with antibiotics.. Glad to hear its getting treated, thats the important part.

 

[winemaker_3352]

Yikes - I don't have experience with it - but they are common in MO those and Black Widows as well.

I have heard that if the bit doesn't get take care of soon enough most of the surronding tissue just dies.

I hope your friend turns out ok..

 

[joea132]

I'm sure you've done your research on the effects and all so you probably know more than most now. The venom will kill the surrounding tissue and leave a nasty hole kind of mark in the flesh. Do not stop the antibiotics even if you think it's completely healed. Take them until they're gone. That's really important.

Another possibility is produce. I've heard of tarantulas in bunches of bananas in Connecticut. They hide inside the packages and travel on trucks. Brown recluses hide in dark damp locations in temperate climates. It certainly is strange for one to be up north but the leather jacket thing is a legitimate possibility. I do remember hearing of a scientist in my area who put his boot on after it sat in his garage and got bitten on his foot.

Whatever the case, I hope he heals quickly and as painless as possible.

 

[ffemt128]

My old boss was bit by one here in PA a few years ago. Sure sounds the way his started out. I think he actually saw the spider and described it to the ER.

 

[Wade E]

My mechanics nephew lost his leg to one many years ago or at least thats what he told me. He was gping to be s wicked good football or baseball player and was being watched by many scouts so this really ruined what could have been a great career. Hope this never comes close to this.

 

[Midwest Vintner]

I got bit last year by an unknown spider/bug. It swelled, pussed, vein turned dark and then my skin hardened and flaked off. This happened over about 6 weeks or so and it was somewhat painful. Oddly, when the skin peeled, there was new skin under it, so I didn't need to cover it or anything.

 

[TxBrew]

I know two different people who have had staph and they misdiagnosis it as brown recluse bite.

 

[jswordy]

Bout 5 years ago, an HVAC repairman crawled under a trailer in Alabama where a nest of lil brown recluse had hatched out. He died before he could get back out from under there.

My cousins used to live in Missouri, and we'd walk those dirt roads with them barefoot (not me, thanks). One day there was a big black spider crossing the road and my cousin stepped on it. "Black widow," he said.

"Really?" I said. He flipped it over, sure enough there was the red hourglass. I saw them step on them with bare feet all the time. I thought they were crazy.

 

[roadpupp]

My dad in CT got a recluse bite on his toe. The telltale hole of rotting flesh took 6 weeks to heal but the antibiotic brought the swelling down and it ultimately healed up just fine. Good luck.

 

[CarpeDuctum]

I live in upstate NY on the Niagara river. I was bit on my jaw by a brown recluse the first spring I was in my house. Very painful...shooting pains down my ear canal. My jaw started locking up. It eventually cleared up after a few weeks.

The spiders were living in my damp basement, crawl spaces and outside my house. A dehumidifier and chemicals killed off most of the interior population. Use a shop vacuum to remove webs ans eggs. Every couple months I put a band of granules around the outside perimeter of the house. This has really collapsed the population. I also think my bug Zapper light helps too...less food for the spiders.

Good luck!

 

[g8keeper]

and people wonder why in the hell i hate and am somewhat afraid of spiders.....i can watch them on tv, sure, but i tell ya, in real life, damn....lol...i can't stand them at all....lol...

 

[Nubz]

What makes you think we don't have them here?
I have seen more than one in my lifetime and have lived no place else