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Previous Volume 352:700-707 February 17, 2005 Number 7 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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Cutaneous injury caused by spider venom has been recognized by physicians in the United States only since the late 1950s, with recluse spiders (genus loxosceles) most frequently implicated. During the past five decades, the growing popular belief that spiders cause many cases of skin necrosis in the United States has resulted in the presumption that brown recluse spiders are to blame, even in geographic areas where they are extremely rare or nonexistent.

Among both physicians and the general public, the perceived threat of spider bites far exceeds the actual risk. The misdiagnosis of spider bites is given to a wide . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Epidemiology of Ulcerating Spider Bites

Where Loxosceles Spiders Live

Loxosceles Spider Activity

Identification of Loxosceles Spiders

Nonpathogenic Spiders and Unproven Spider Pathogens

Diagnosis and Misdiagnosis

Treatment

Dapsone

Glucocorticoids

Other Drug Therapy

Hyperbaric Oxygen

Electric Shock

Excision and Grafting

Antivenom

Summary

Source Information

From the Department of Dermatology, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale, Ariz. (D.L.S.); and the Department of Entomology, University of California, Riverside, Calif. (R.S.V.).

Address reprint requests to Dr. Swanson at the Department of Dermatology, Mayo Clinic, 13400 E. Shea Blvd., Scottsdale, AZ 85259.

Related Letters:

Bites of the Brown Recluse Spider
Atlas E., Yee A., Wasserman G. S., Swanson D. L., Vetter R. S.
Extract | Full Text | PDF  
N Engl J Med 2005; 352:2029-2030, May 12, 2005. Correspondence

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Frithsen, I. L., Vetter, R. S., Stocks, I. C. (2007). Reports of Envenomation by Brown Recluse Spiders Exceed Verified Specimens of Loxosceles Spiders in South Carolina. J Am Board Fam Med 20: 483-488 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Wetter, D. A., Davis, M. D. P. (2006). Ulceration of the Arm Attributed to a Spider Bite and Treated With Intravenous Hydrogen Peroxide: A Cautionary Tale. Arch Dermatol 142: 1658-1659 [Full Text]  
• VETTER, R. S., ISBISTER, G. K., BUSH, S. P., BOUTIN, L. J. (2006). VERIFIED BITES BY YELLOW SAC SPIDERS (GENUS CHEIRACANTHIUM) IN THE UNITED STATES AND AUSTRALIA: WHERE IS THE NECROSIS?. Am J Trop Med Hyg 74: 1043-1048 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Nelson, M. (2005). Textbook of Pediatric Emergency Medicine. JAMA 294: 1827-1829 [Full Text]  
• Atlas, E., Yee, A., Wasserman, G. S., Swanson, D. L., Vetter, R. S. (2005). Bites of the brown recluse spider.. NEJM 352: 2029-2030 [Full Text]  
• (2005). Is It Really a Spider Bite?. JWatch Emergency Med. 2005: 6-6 [Full Text]