It’s summer, time for bumblebees and bedbugs. Anywhere people enjoy nature, so do 6-legged critters (also 8-legged). Backyards, baseball fields, and boulevards are all subject to invasion by biting or biting insects (and arthropods).
For most people, the injuries they inflict on humans are simply an annoyance. For others, they can be life-threatening.
Here are 5 dangers to be aware of if you suffer an insect bite or sting.
1. True allergy. The most immediate danger from a bee, wasp, or hornet sting is a true allergy, an anaphylactic reaction. Many people confuse a large spot reaction with an allergy. If you develop swelling, redness, discomfort, and possibly itching at the sting site BUT nowhere else, this is a local reaction. If you develop ANY symptoms anywhere other than the bite, it is likely an allergy. Hives or welts that occur on a part of the body away from the bite are one symptom. Difficulty breathing, rapid heart rate, nausea, fainting, or a general feeling of being unwell are also serious symptoms. Seek immediate medical attention if you experience any of these symptoms. Call 911 if necessary, especially if the onset is rapid or severe.
2.MRSA. Many patients identify small, red, slightly raised, slightly painful areas as spider bites without ever seeing a spider. Currently, anything that looks like a spider bite is considered MRSA until proven otherwise. MRSA, or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, causes a bacterial infection that, if left untreated, can cause serious illness and even death. If you think you have been bitten by a spider, call your doctor. These lesions are not caused by spider bites, they just look like what people think of as spider bites.
3. Lyme disease. If you’ve been bitten by a tick, especially in the eastern third of the United States, be aware of Lyme disease. This infection is caused by Borrelia burgdorferi, a bacterium carried by deer ticks that can be injected into human skin at the time of a bite. The small bite wound can develop into a larger injury that looks like a bull’s-eye. Your doctor should evaluate any symptoms of illness that occur after a tick bite. Lyme disease requires antibiotics to clear the infection. If left untreated, it can cause arthritis, heart irregularities, nerve damage, and sometimes memory disorders.
4. Local infection. Any open wound can become infected with germs that live on the skin, especially staph or strep. If you’ve had an insect bite or sting that seems to get worse over time, see your doctor. Symptoms of infection include an enlarging lesion, increased redness or warmth in the wound, worsening discomfort, and occasionally pus. Your doctor may want to obtain a culture of the wound to identify infection, or may simply offer you antibiotics.
5. West Nile Virus. In the United States, mosquito bites usually cause just an itchy welt, nothing more. However, West Nile Virus has been identified in each of the lower 48 states. Even then, most people who get this viral infection show minimal (or no) symptoms. About 20% of people with the infection may experience a variety of symptoms that they may or may not attribute to West Nile fever: rashes, headaches, fever, nausea or diarrhea, decreased appetite, muscle aches, swollen glands . Only 1% develop a serious infection in the brain, including encephalitis or meningitis. Symptoms of neurological infection may include fever, severe headache, disorientation, confusion, stroke-like symptoms, paralysis, stiff neck, or seizures. Seek medical attention if you develop any of these symptoms, especially after being bitten by a mosquito.
Fortunately, for the most part, insects and humans coexist peacefully in the same environment. Don’t let the above worry you and stay inside. Just be aware that a creature much smaller than you can deal significant damage through a bite or sting, though often at the price of its own death.
Copyright 2010 Cynthia J. Koelker, MD