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Injuries from spider spines, not spider bites.

Geoffrey K Isbister1, David Hirst

  • 1Discipline of Clinical Pharmacology, Level 5, Clinical Sciences Building, University of Newcastle, Newcastle Mater Misericordiae Hospital, Waratah NSW 2298, Australia.

Veterinary and Human Toxicology
|December 3, 2002
PubMed
Summary

Large spiders can injure people with their leg spines, often alongside bites. These spine injuries can cause "splinters" and mechanical damage, as seen in huntsman spider cases.

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Area of Science:

  • Arachnology
  • Toxicology
  • Dermatology

Background:

  • Spider bites are a common cause of injury.
  • Some theraphosid spiders (tarantulas) can cause skin and eye irritation with their hairs.
  • The potential for injury from leg spines of larger spiders remains under-investigated.

Observation:

  • A prospective study identified 15 cases of suspected injury from spider leg spines over three years.
  • In all cases,

Findings:

  • In 11 cases, a definite spider bite co-occurred with spine injury.
  • Two cases definitively confirmed spider leg spines causing injury, with one involving a huntsman spider (Sparassidae) and a bite.
  • Spines primarily caused mechanical injury, with one instance of delayed inflammatory reaction.

Implications:

  • This research confirms that larger spiders can inflict injuries via their leg spines.
  • The presence of

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