[Shakey]

Paging iridopelma

[Kimnjim07]

I've been bitten by a damn brown recluse on my forehead. I must've slapped it (while crawling on my head) in my sleep. I know I woke up in searing pain and was rushed to the ER. By the time I was seen my whole face was swollen to the point I could not see nor speak properly. They sedated me, put a tube down my throat to prevent me from suffocating, and kept me on antibiotics, monitored my wound, and kept me doped up. They turned back the sedation after day 3. When I woke up I had a dime size hole in my forehead that was covered by a VAC. Luckily I only have a small scar on my forehead and it's only noticeable if I point it out without make up on. Needless to say my husband had Terminex come out weekly for 2 months to make sure nothing crawling survived. My doctor also had to put me on Zanax b/c my fear would set in and cause horrible panic attacks. I also still get phantom pain from it 18 months later.

[vegankjh]

That doesn't look like a recluse bite.....those bites tend to spread from a centralized point--bite mark and out. Those looks like claw marks of some type. some bites are minor but others pack a lot of toxins that produce necrosis--doesn't look like necrosis there. Again, those go from a centralized point and out. Just my 2 cents.

[T2]

Damn!!!

[iridopelma]

Originally Posted by Shakey ↗

Paging iridopelma

Ugh. I saw this and have been trying to bite my tongue and not comment.

There are so many injuries that get misdiagnosed as recluse bites because they all look the same. An injury can't be properly diagnosed as a recluse bite unless the animal is caught while it's biting the person, and ID'd by a professional (NOT a doctor).

Here's a fun list of a whole bunch of random things (some terrifyingly serious) that most often get misdiagnosed as recluse bites:
Staph infection, Strep infection, gonococcal arthritis dermatitis, cutaneous fucking anthrax, warfarin poisoning, herpes, shingles, lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tick bites, kissing bug bites, infected mosquito bites, mite bites, flea bites, biting fly bites, sporotrichosis, poison oak/ivy, chemical burn, keratin cell mediated response to fungus, lymphoma, lymphomatoid papulosis, diabetic ulcer, focal vasculitis, purpura fulminans, thromboembolic phenomena, polyarteritis nodosa, pyoderma gangrenosum, pressure ulcers, Stevens-Johnson syndrome, erythema multiforme, erythema nodosum, toxic epidermal necrolysis, and Lyell's syndrome.

Another thing is that when one is actually bitten by a recluse, the venom doesn't necessarily cause necrosis every single time - most of the time, it's the secondary infection that causes damage after the person who was bit scratches at the wound or picks at the scab and the dirt from their hands or fingernails gets into the wound.

There are several other threads of "recluse bites" in this section. All of the images posted in them are found on google images, which in itself is not a reliable source of information, and those same images will come up when one searches for "black widow bite", "snake bite", "hobo spider bite", "African spider bite", "camel spider bite" (which don't even have venom), and countless others.

Do your research before posting, kiddos, and don't get your gore from google images.

[This public service announcement has been brought to you in part by iridopelma]

[Shakey]

Originally Posted by iridopelma ↗

Ugh. I saw this and have been trying to bite my tongue and not comment.

There are so many injuries that get misdiagnosed as recluse bites because they all look the same. An injury can't be properly diagnosed as a recluse bite unless the animal is brought in while it's biting the person, and ID'd by a professional (NOT a doctor).

Here's a fun list of a whole bunch of random things (some terrifyingly serious) that most often get misdiagnosed as recluse bites:
Staph infection, Strep infection, gonococcal arthritis dermatitis, cutaneous fucking anthrax, warfarin poisoning, herpes, shingles, lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tick bites, kissing bug bites, infected mosquito bites, mite bites, flea bites, biting fly bites, sporotrichosis, poison oak/ivy, chemical burn, keratin cell mediated response to fungus, lymphoma, lymphomatoid papulosis, diabetic ulcer, focal vasculitis, purpura fulminans, thromboembolic phenomena, polyarteritis nodosa, pyoderma gangrenosum, pressure ulcers, Stevens-Johnson syndrome, erythema multiforme, erythema nodosum, toxic epidermal necrolysis, and Lyell's syndrome.

Another thing is that when one is actually bitten by a recluse, the venom doesn't necessarily cause necrosis every single time - most of the time, it's the secondary infection that causes damage after the person who was bit scratches at the wound or picks at the scab and the dirt from their hands or fingernails gets into the wound.

There are several other threads of "recluse bites" in this section. All of the images posted in them are found on google images, which in itself is not a reliable source of information, and those same images will come up when one searches for "black widow bite", "snake bite", "hobo spider bite", "African spider bite", "camel spider bite" (which don't even have venom), and countless others.

Do your research before posting, kiddos, and don't get your gore from google images.

[This public service announcement has been brought to you in part by iridopelma]

I don't think that's a spider bite either. That looks just like a boat propeller wound that is seen so often on Florida Manatees.