Quick thinking saves infant from black widow spider

Quick supportive medical treatment saved her from system failure and possibly even death. A black widow bite causes severe pain and muscular and neurological symptoms.

By JUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH
Updated: OCTOBER 21, 2016 10:55
A black widow spider that bit a child in Caesarea (photo credit: HILLEL YAFFE MEDICAL CENTER)
A black widow spider that bit a child in Caesarea
(photo credit: HILLEL YAFFE MEDICAL CENTER)
An 11-month-old baby who was bitten at home in Caesarea by a black widow spider on Thursday is in good condition after being treated at Hillel Yaffe Medical Center in Hadera.
Dr. Adi Klein, head of pediatrics, said on Thursday that it was rare for such a spider to be found in Israel and especially to enter a home.
Quick supportive medical treatment saved her from system failure and possibly even death. A black widow bite causes severe pain and muscular and neurological symptoms.
The incident occurred in the living room, where the family was eating dinner. Her mother saw something dark and small in her hand that she was about to put into her mouth. Her big brother tried to take it out of her hand, but it bit her and jumped to the floor. The father caught it and put it in a jar, trying to identify it on the Internet.
When he saw it looked like a black widow, he and his wife rushed the baby to the hospital.
She is now recovering. “There is no doubt that the parents’ alertness and the speedy treatment she received saved her, Klein said.