As ten-month old Brad crawled through the Texas St. Augustine grass his chubby legs slowly propelled him around the corner of the house. At that point, he stopped, then promptly plopped his diaper down into a large mound of fire ants. The year was 1966 and only moments before, I’d been told to watch my little brother while my mother left the front yard to take the clothes off the line around back.
At six years of age, we aren’t privy to the precise course of action in medical emergencies but by some miracle, or stroke of luck, I chose to do the right thing. By the time I jumped off the swing set and sprinted to Brad, the painful pests had already covered his tender, white skin from head to toe. I lassoed my arms around the baby and ran straight to the bathtub inside, where I proceeded to douse him with water and wash the venomous little varmints down the drain.
For those unfamiliar with fire ants, lucky you! Fire ants sting about five million Americans each year. Typically found in the Southeastern U.S., the Solenopsis invicta (fire ant) can wage aggressive attacks and levy painful bites to unknowing individuals who dare disturb their nests. Fire ants belong to the class Hymenoptera and inject venom into humans and animals. Their venom is useful for attacking other insects and acts as a paralyzing or killing agent. The fire ants venom contains proteins and other substances that can also cause an anaphylactic reaction in some adults and children.
Even if you don’t have an allergic reaction, and few fortunately do, you will surely endure a painful bite with a subsequent sting that leaves redness, itching and swelling at the bite site. A small blister will form at each site within four hours. Within 6-24 hours later, you’ll notice a pus-filled sore at each bite site. It’s common to feel burning and itching around the sores.
Stings and Bites That Can Cause Allergic Reactions
Oddly enough, an anaphylactic reaction rarely occurs with the first sting or bite. When a severe allergic reaction does occur, it’s typically the body’s immune system overreacting to the insect’s venom (the allergen). Other insects and pests whose sting and bites can cause an allergic reaction include:
- Wasp, bee and hornet sting: bee stings can be annoyingly painful and potential deadly, if a victim is stung multiple times and has a severe allergic reaction
- Spiders: spider bites from black widow and brown recluse spiders can leave a victim in serious pain and cause deadly allergic reactions
- Scorpions: the U.S. has 90 species, with most in Arizona, California, Texas and New Mexico
- Centipedes/caterpillars: pain, redness and swelling or common with a centipede sting
- Snakes: pit vipers are the most prevalent family of poisonous snakes in the United States and include rattlesnakes, water moccasins and copperheads. Snake bites from these pit vipers can cause serious tissue damage and possibly lead to an allergic reaction
Symptoms of Severe Allergic Reactions
About 500 people die each year from serious allergic reactions, so knowing the symptoms of an anaphylactic reaction is important. Those symptoms may include:
- Breathing difficulty
- Shock
- Severe swelling of face and/or throat
- Low blood pressure
- Dizziness or fainting
If you or a loved one experience one of these symptoms after being stung or bitten, you should immediately proceed to the nearest emergency room. Download iTriage for your preferred mobile device, so that you always know the closest emergency room to your current location.
