Scorpion Sting

2024 Author: Josephine Shorter | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 21:43

Scorpion sting

Content:

• Symptoms from a scorpion bite
• First aid for a scorpion bite
• The consequences of a scorpion bite

Symptoms from a scorpion bite

There are about 1,500 different types of scorpions in the world. More than fifty of them are poisonous and dangerous to humans. They are distributed all over the world. Their main habitat is countries and areas with a fairly warm, dry and hot climate (Asia, India, South Africa, the Caucasus, South America). It is quite easy to identify a scorpion by its appearance. Its dimensions are about 10-15 cm, the tail has a characteristic upward bend, at the top of which there is a stinging element with a poisonous bubble. At the time of the bite, the sting damages the skin with the release of the poison into the wound. The clinical picture and symptoms of a scorpion bite depend on the toxic properties of the venom of a particular type of scorpion.

Usually, the moment of getting a bite rarely goes unnoticed. It can both be seen directly and felt in the form of a sudden acute burning sensation at the site of the bite. The rate of development of subsequent symptoms and their severity depends on the type and venom of the scorpion.

The common characteristics of the venom of all scorpions are the following components:

1. Neurotoxin - a foreign poisonous protein that has a destructive effect on the nerve cells of the peripheral nerves and brain tissue;
2. Antigens - the protein components of the poison that cause allergic manifestations;
3. Other components that affect the work of the heart and the release of stress hormones;

The symptoms of a scorpion bite are completely predetermined by the action of the listed components of the venom and are reduced to the following manifestations:

1. Pain and burning of varying degrees at the site of the bite. The more poisonous the scorpion, the more intense the pain;
2. Edema and swelling of the bitten site. When bitten by non-venomous scorpions, it occupies a local area of soft tissue around the bite. Poisonous scorpions provoke the spread of puffiness to more distant areas;
3. Redness of the skin at the site of the bite;
4. Feeling of numbness in a bitten limb or other segment. The area of the woody surface gradually expands and the more, the more poisonous the scorpion is;
5. Convulsive syndrome. It can be of varying intensity: from small twitchings of individual muscle groups of the limbs to massive general convulsions;

6. Pain in the abdomen and throughout the body, nausea, vomiting, headache;

7. Sore throat, increased salivation. Always precede generalized convulsive seizures and are signs of severe intoxication;
8. Rapid heartbeat, heavy breathing, lethargy or loss of consciousness. Always severe symptoms from scorpion bites.

First aid for a scorpion bite

If it is known that a non-poisonous scorpion was the culprit in the bite, you should not panic. Symptoms of such scorpion bites are limited to local manifestations and disappear after a few hours without the provision of specialized medical care. All cases of bites by unknown scorpions or their venomous representatives require immediate hospitalization to monitor the victim. First aid and specialized measures consist of:

1. Pressing down on the bitten site. When bitten by poisonous scorpions in the first minutes, you can make a small incision through the bite with an attempt to suck out the poison. You can also cauterize the bitten area with a hot object;

2. Applying cold;
3. Treatment of the wound with antiseptic solutions (alcohol, peroxide, washing with ordinary soap);
4. Applying a tight bandage to the bite and adjacent skin;
5. Chipping the bite with a solution of novocaine and adrenaline. This will significantly slow down the rate of absorption of the poison and give more time for the delivery of the victim to the hospital;
6. The introduction of atropine (a drug that blocks the effect of poison on nerve cells);
7. Administration of specific antitoxic serum. It belongs to the most effective therapeutic measures, as it causes the destruction of the poison. This is especially true for poisonous scorpion bites;
8. Symptomatic treatment and the fight against intoxication. Includes anticonvulsants, intravenous fluids and diuretics, and respiratory and blood pressure control.

On the subject: Treatment of scorpion bites with folk remedies

The consequences of a scorpion bite

Non-venomous scorpion bites pass without serious consequences and end with local reactions in the form of painful swelling at the bite sites, which disappear after a few days. Regional lymph nodes located near the bitten area may enlarge.

With poisonous scorpion bites, things are a little more difficult. The development of severe convulsive syndrome and intoxication is possible. If not treated properly, this can be fatal. In less severe cases, prolonged paresthesias and numbness of the affected limb remain with periodic muscle twitching. Local reactions are also quite severe. They can be manifested by necrosis and necrosis of the skin around the bite, prolonged enlargement of the lymph nodes.

Author of the article: Danilova Tatyana Vyacheslavovna | Infectionist

Education: in 2008 received a diploma in General Medicine (General Medicine) at the Pirogov Russian Research Medical University. Immediately passed an internship and received a diploma of a therapist