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A 39-year-old woman from Ostia, Sabrina Gigliotti, died 40 days after being bitten by a brown recluse spider. Her family filed a complaint, and the Rome prosecutor's office opened a case of manslaughter—currently against unknown persons—and an autopsy has been ordered to determine the cause of death.
But what happens with a brown recluse spider bite? And what should you do if it bites? Loxosceles rufescens, aka the brown recluse spider, is a small yellow-brown spider named after a distinctive dark spot on the front of its body that resembles the shape of a violin. "Ubiquitous in Italy, it can be found in domestic environments.
It is a spider poisonous to humans, however its bite is not a medical emergency and therefore it is not necessary to go to the emergency room immediately,” reassure the doctors at the Maugeri Poison Control and Toxicology Center in Pavia, who in an online focus outline the insect's identikit.
“Its venom can cause various types of injury,” it says.
It ranges from a "minimal lesion" (which appears at the time of the bite, is very small and heals spontaneously), to the so-called "erythematous loxoscelism" (which appears a few hours after the bite, with redness, itching and mild swelling that resolve spontaneously), up to "necrotic loxoscelism" which appears at least 48 hours after the bite and presents as an area of blackish skin, a few millimetres or centimetres in diameter.
"The progression from a simple bite to necrotic loxoscelism is very rare," he specifies, "and only less than 1% of these cases progress to systemic loxoscelism," with flu-like symptoms, low-grade fever, and joint pain. "The worsening of the lesion and any complications depend on the affected person's pre-existing conditions (e.g., diabetes, immune system disorders, etc.)," emphasizes the Pavia Cavaliere, who adds: "To date, no fatal cases of brown recluse spider bites have ever been reported in Italy."
Toxicologists remind us that "the stings of other insects/Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, hornets, mosquitoes, sandflies) and non-venomous spiders are indistinguishable from the brown recluse spider bite (erythematous lesion), so a bite can only be considered certain if the spider bites and is subsequently identified as an arachnologist." That said, in the event of a bite, the experts' first recommendation is to "always verify that you have active tetanus vaccination coverage." Regarding treatment, which should "always be discussed with your doctor and/or the Poison Control Center doctor," it depends on the type of lesion. For minor lesions: "Local disinfection plus application of antibiotic cream (e.g., gentamicin); for erythematous loxoscelism: "Local disinfection plus application of antibiotic cream (e.g., gentamicin) plus possible oral antibiotic therapy (e.g., doxycycline), following evaluation by a Poison Control Center physician"; for necrotic or systemic loxoscelism: "Go immediately to the emergency room and have the Poison Control Center physician contacted." Finally, to make your home safe, "there are specific products on the market for disinfesting your home from arachnids and crawling insects."
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