[Latrodectism in Corsica. Study of 15 cases]

Malmignate bites are rare in Corsica nowadays. The authors report 15 cases of latrodectism in patients hospitalized between 1986 and 1993 at the Ajaccio hospital in southern Corsica. The disease has a polymorphous expression. We investigated the frequency and the specificity of the symptoms. Eleven clinical signs and 2 biological signs enabled us to describe 3 categories: specific, moderately specific, non-specific. Most of the signs described in the literature were found in this study, as well as a concordant frequency. We notice, though, that the latrodectesmica facies was not often observed in this series. No serious complication occurred.