Rare, Highly Toxic Spider Strikes

A Tri-Cities man is recovering from the spider bite and doctors believe the spider that struck him while he was asleep may have been a brown recluse.

“It was kind of painful. Itchy,” said Daniel Addington.

Addington didn’t think much about the small mark under his arm until more than a day later.

“It had spread out and it had a large red ring from my upper arm to my hip,“ said Addington.

No one saw the culprit, but his doctor told him he had the signs of a bite reaction from a brown recluse spider.  Dermatologist Donald Clemons says these bites are rare.

“I honestly haven’t had a bad brown recluse bite here.  I’ve heard of an occasional one,“ said Dr. Clemons.

And he treats many false spider bites.

“Most patients who complain of spider bites actually have a staph infection or a bump or another type of a bite,“ said Dr. Clemons.

Brown recluse spiders’ trademark is a violin shape on its back.  They are often found in states from Texas and Oklahoma to Tennessee.  The exception is here in the states most eastern counties.  Doctor Clemons says that doesn’t mean recluse spiders aren’t here.  They often hitch a ride while people move.

“In their clothing, bedding, in the moving van, and then stays in the house and they are reclusive,“ said Dr. Clemons.

These critters are not out to get you.  They only strike in defense.

“You’re too big for them to eat, so they’re not going to inject.  They generally going to use their venom to kill their prey and eat them,“ said Dr. Clemons.

The reaction in a human can vary from mild to severe depending on the spider’s age, bite location, and size of the person.

“If a spider has recently fed or released its venom, then your reaction may be just a slight redness, stinging, burning, and maybe a slight blister,“ said Dr. Clemons.

The worst case scenario—Necrosis.

“Or death of an extensive part of tissue with wounds approaching that size,“ said Dr. Clemons.

Doctors tell us that most spiders in the Tri-Cities area are harmless and they do not have too many problems with spider bites here.  Even when doctors do see spider bites, they may be difficult to diagnose unless the patient actually saw the spider.

According to researchers at the University of Tennessee’s Institute of Agriculture, brown recluse spiders can be found in all types of buildings.  They prefer dark storage areas in closets, garages, basements, attics and cabinets.