I've Been Bitten By A Spider... Now What?

If you have been bitten by a spider and not sure what to do, this page is for you!

It is interesting how people who have negative feelings towards spiders are more likely to believe they have been bitten by a spider even when there is no evidence to suggest a spider was involved. They are also more likely to believe misinformation, old wives tales, use ineffective first aid, delay treatment or rely on social media advice. 

The following are not valid reasons to diagnose symptoms as spider related:

• I saw a spider last week and woke up this morning with a bite.
• Looks like a spider bite.
• It is the only thing that can cause a bite like that.
• Someone of my conservation WhatsApp group identified is as a spider bite. 
• It was identified as a spider bite social media. 
• I Googled spider bites.
• I asked ChatGPT, DeepSeek or Grok.
• My doctor told me it was a spider bite.

The following simple diagram helps us diagnose if the symptoms are spider related or not.

Spider bites cannot be diagnosed according to symptoms alone. This is because there are just too many non-spider related causes of 'spider bite' like symptoms. This has resulted in an epidemic of spider bite misdiagnosis.

There are so many causations of spider bite like symptoms, that without any evidence that a spider was involved, diagnosis of a spider bite is pure speculation. Unless the patient saw the spider bite them, the symptoms are very unlikely to be spider related. It is estimated that most misdiagnosed spider bites are bacterial related and not venom related.

The bite of less than 1% of spiders in South Africa may be of medical importance. The symptoms of a bite are not solely dictated by the spiders venom, there are other factors that need to be factored in, such as the patients  pre-existing medical conditions such as diabetes, autoimmune diseases, alcoholism, and obesity. Other factors such as did the patient seek early assistance for the symptoms or was treatment delayed? Did they rely on ineffective natropathic remedy's before seeking to medical assistance? All of these factors and more will have a direct influence on symptoms experienced by the patient. 

Regardless of if the patient saw the spider bite them or not, regardless of if it is a spider bite or not, regardless of the cause... if the symptoms are of concern in any way, then contact a poison information helpline or take the patient should be taken to see a professional medical doctor. 

This content is the product of many hours of work based upon years of experience. If you found it useful or of value, then please consider a small donation to help me offer more content like this!