The November edition of the Australian Family Physician was dedicated to bites. Australia is home to 10000 spider species , including the world’s most poisonous one the funnel web , luckily only of touristic interest for us smiling West Australians but an absolute medical emergency and should be treated like a snake bite if attacked by one over east. Our most commonest cause for help sought is the red back spider bite. Easily diagnosed if bite witnessed, but sometimes missed in kids who might just present with irritability sweating and localized pain as fang marks are missing. Red back spider antivenom is reserved for bites causing severe pain or general illness . There have not been any deaths since 1950ies . Recent studies have not been able to show a link between white tail spiders and ulcerated wounds, it seems that it is more likely in Australia to suffer ulcer due to trauma , infection or poor perfusion . But who knows what spiders are still out there. A much bigger problem seem to be dog bites , 35-42 of Ozzie house holds own dogs and 2 % of the population are annually bitten , almost 100000 patients require treatment for dog bite and 13000 in hospital. Biggest risk factors for dogbites seem to be :
- male gender of victim
- children less than 5 years
- household’s own dog
- male unsterilized dogs
The worst offenders by far are doberman’s , german shepherds , Rottweilers and pit bull terriers responsible for 31% of all bites. Lesson clearly has to be never to leave children alone with dogs under any circumstance. Educate your kids to approach dogs with caution, and strictly under adults supervision, leave feeding dogs and puppy rearing bitches alone, avoid territorial dogs. Watch for signs of infection ( redness, inflammation, pus collection or discharge) Get a tetanus shot ! Cat bites are particularly nasty as sharp teeth can penetrate deeper structures lead to joint infection , tendon and vascular injuries even they appear as minor puncture marks on the surface only. The worst by far ar human bites ( attack and love bites) which almost always become infected and also need a chat to the ED DR or GP as there could be concerns re Hepatitis B / C and HIV , which might need prophylactic treatment. Remember rabies and seek immediate medical attention , if you are bitten or scratched by animals when abroad , however lovely they might look. Did you know that Australian bats can transmit a lyssa virus a near identical and as deadly as the rabies virus. Now sleep tight and don’t let the bed bugs bite and if they do (which they do more often even in 4 star hotels again) get the professional pest controllers in and don’t try to treat them yourself as they apparently have grown resistant to a number of pesticides .
Helko Schenk
Geraldton Medical Group
4 12 2009
- male gender of victim
- children less than 5 years
- household’s own dog
- male unsterilized dogs
The worst offenders by far are doberman’s , german shepherds , Rottweilers and pit bull terriers responsible for 31% of all bites. Lesson clearly has to be never to leave children alone with dogs under any circumstance. Educate your kids to approach dogs with caution, and strictly under adults supervision, leave feeding dogs and puppy rearing bitches alone, avoid territorial dogs. Watch for signs of infection ( redness, inflammation, pus collection or discharge) Get a tetanus shot ! Cat bites are particularly nasty as sharp teeth can penetrate deeper structures lead to joint infection , tendon and vascular injuries even they appear as minor puncture marks on the surface only. The worst by far ar human bites ( attack and love bites) which almost always become infected and also need a chat to the ED DR or GP as there could be concerns re Hepatitis B / C and HIV , which might need prophylactic treatment. Remember rabies and seek immediate medical attention , if you are bitten or scratched by animals when abroad , however lovely they might look. Did you know that Australian bats can transmit a lyssa virus a near identical and as deadly as the rabies virus. Now sleep tight and don’t let the bed bugs bite and if they do (which they do more often even in 4 star hotels again) get the professional pest controllers in and don’t try to treat them yourself as they apparently have grown resistant to a number of pesticides .
Helko Schenk
Geraldton Medical Group
4 12 2009
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