MEDICAL MINUTE: ITSY BITSY SPIDERS
Most spiders and I get along just fine. As a matter of fact, I actually like looking at a few of them like the enormous Yellow Garden Spiders. That’s a good thing too, the property my house is situated on is cut from a decades-old stand of long-needled pines that seem to be a haven for the creatures. With spring just around the corner, it won’t be long before we start seeing them pop up all over the place. And, whether my wife likes it or not, our paths will start crossing with many of Mississippi’s eight-legged residents.
The overwhelming majority of spiders in our state, and around the country, are not a threat to humans. Some are nonvenomous while others can’t puncture our skin deep enough to make a bite with their tiny fangs. Although this is true of some spiders, it has spawned some school-yard myths as well. For example, maybe you have heard that the “Daddy-Longlegs” are one of the most poisonous spiders, but have fangs too short to bite humans. That is simply not true at all. The most common class of Daddy Longlegs in Mississippi is the family Opiliones. These arachnids make their living eating decomposing vegetables and animal matter. They do not have venom glands, fangs, or any method for chemically subduing their food (plants rarely run away). Therefore, Opiliones do not have poison and cannot be a danger to humans.
However, there are several that do pose a risk to you in our state: The Brown Recluse and three types of Black Widow. The Brown Recluse is an average sized spider of about 1/3 of an inch with a leg span of 1 inch. They are generally a yellowish-brown in color with a darker colored violin shape at the top of their abdomen. This is where they get their musical nickname of the ‘fiddle-back.’ These spiders pack a powerful bite that begins to cause damage to the skin and surrounding tissue. This necrotic wound can sometimes cause headache, nausea, and (in rare cases) kidney failure.
The Widow family is made of three types: The Northern and Southern Black Widow and the Brown Widow. The Southern Black Widow is the most common to our area and will be our focus of discussion. Mature females are glossy black with a distinctive bright-red hourglass marking the underside of the abdomen. Sometimes, they will also have a red dot on the back end of the abdomen, just above the spinnerets as well. As with all Widow spiders, only the female of the species is dangerous with the much smaller and differently colored male being considered harmless. The Black Widow is nocturnal, meaning they are only active during the nighttime. They spend most of the daylight hours hanging upside down from their web, making the hourglass on their underside visible. These spiders are usually not aggressive and generally only bite when they feel threatened.
Symptoms of a venomous spider bite include localized pain at the site of the injection along with muscle cramps, abdominal pain, weakness, and tremors. The severity of the reaction depends largely on the age and physical condition of the person bitten; children and elderly are most at risk. In serve cases, blood pressure and heart rate may be elevated and the abdominal pain can mimic the symptoms associated with a heart attack. The good news is that people rarely die from spider bites. Although painful, they can generally be managed well. A bite from a Widow or Brown Recluse will require a trip to your physician. Home remedies such as cold and warm compresses along with Tylenol are just not effective and only cause needless pain. Get to your physician or an Emergency Room for a complete evaluation. Mild cases with little envenomation will probably only require treatment of the wound with pain medications and observation. Major reactions or multiple bites might need the use of an antivenin and powerful narcotics to relieve pain. Once again, these bites are rarely deadly.
As I said, I don’t mind spiders. I am sure that I have had dozens of bites in my life from spiders other than those listed here. Every one of them healed naturally with only a small, itching bump left behind. Of course, I don’t come into contact with spiders as much as some of you. As spring turns into summer and all of our arachnid residents begin stirring, it might be a good idea to keep a can of Raid handy if your job keeps you out and about. Stay safe out there.
M. Eric Williams, MS, NR-P is a syndicated columnist and the Assistant Director of Emergency Medical Technology Education at Jones County Junior College. He is a current Doctoral researcher at Delta State University and has 15 years’ experience in Emergency Medicine. If you have questions or comments, you may contact him at eric.williams@jcjc.edu
