Scorpion bite: symptoms, first aid, consequences and treatment

Scorpio is an exotic arachnoid resembling a type of arthropod insect, resembling a crayfish, which for many centuries has filled fear in all living things.

His bite carries a great danger to man, up to partial paralysis and death.

Where can stumble upon a scorpion?

Scorpios are very aggressive and poisonous; they are found mainly in the countries of Southern Europe, Central Asia, America, North Africa, the Caucasus, the Middle East and the Crimea.

Особенным представителем данного вида насекомых is an Israeli subspecies of the genus Leiurus quinquestriatus, which is translated from the Latin as "deadly pursuer". The risk of being bitten is most affected by residents and guests of southern countries, who first need to know what an insect looks like and what kind of lifestyle it leads. If in some way a person was injured like a scorpion bite, what should I do? How to escape? What measures need to be taken first?

Scorpion Description

Скорпион имеет внушительные размеры (иногда до 18 cm) looks like a crayfish: a segmented body, 2 claws, 6 limbs. You can recognize a dangerous creature by a thickened upward curved tail with a sharp sting. The insect spends most of its life, which lasts about 5 years, in places inaccessible to the human eye (small gorges, spaces under stones, holes in sandy soil 15-25 cm deep). Activity manifests mainly at night. A person can be attacked only because of fear or in the process of protection.

The poison of some representatives of the species is very dangerous, so a timely recognized scorpion bite can save human life. It is believed that individuals with large claws are less poisonous.

Scorpion bite: symptoms

When a scorpion sting resembles a painful injection, the following symptoms are observed:

• Acute, burning pain, proportional in its power to the degree of toxicity of a scorpion. For painful sensations, it resembles a severe burn and can last for several hours, sometimes intensifying, then calming down.

• Redness in the affected area with a dark puncture point in the middle. The occurrence of edema, rapidly spreading with potent poison.
• Severe itching.
• Feeling of numbness at the site of injury.
• The formation of bubbles filled with clear liquid.
• Attacks of nausea, periodic vomiting, pain in the abdomen.
• Dizziness, headache, sometimes a sore throat.
• Inflammation of the lymph nodes.
• Active salivation confirming intoxication of the body.
• Swelling of the tongue, discharge from the eyes of a purulent consistency - with severe lesions.

• Tachycardia and loss of consciousness in particularly difficult cases.
• Unstable body temperature.
• A common concern is the result of over-stimulation of the nervous system.

Scorpion bite: first aid and treatment

It is very important to react to the bite in a timely manner.malicious insect, because passivity in such cases can cause serious consequences. What to do when a scorpion bite? In the first minutes, actions should be taken to prevent and slow the penetration of the poison into the body.

• Попытаться выдавить яд либо сделать в месте укуса small incision and suck out the poison. Liquid need to spit out periodically. After completing the procedure, rinse the mouth thoroughly with water. It is very important that there are no wounds in the mouth. The method is effective in the first 10 minutes after injury.
• Place the lesion with an alcohol solution and apply an antiseptic dressing. This will protect against getting inside the microbes that could be carried by a scorpion on his sting.
• Apply a cold or apply a tight bandage to relieve swelling and reduce pain. It slows down the spread of a poisonous substance in the body.

• Place the victim horizontally, ensuring complete immobility of the bitten limb.
• Make an injection of adrenaline or novocaine at the site of the bite, which temporarily blocks the absorption of the poison.
• Apply antiallergic medicines. The action on the nerve cells will eliminate the injection of "Atropine."

• Immediately deliver the victim to the nearest medical facility for professional assistance and further treatment.

How to avoid a scorpion bite

To avoid becoming a victim of the scorpion, it is recommended:

• for an overnight stay in nature, where there is a high probability of the presence of scorpions, choose smooth surfaces, necessarily cleaning them from foreign objects: dry twigs, stones, etc .;
• tightly curtain the entrance to the tent;
• before going to bed to conduct scrupulous inspection of tents, sleeping bags;
• shake out clothes and shoes in the morning;
• do not wander at night on stony slopes, do not collect firewood;
• do not walk without shoes on sandy beaches and deserted places, as scorpions like to burrow into the sand to a small depth;
• when meeting a dangerous insect, you should not tease him, try to touch the tail.

It is necessary to understand the danger to the bodycarries scorpion venom. Being a neurotoxic polypeptide, this substance is characterized by its ability to cause allergic reactions, stimulate the release of stress hormones and negatively affect brain tissues and nerve cells.

Treatment

При укусе неядовитого скорпиона лечение It consists in treating the wound and relieving pain with cold or painkillers. In more complicated cases, the victim is required to ensure rest; in the presence of high blood pressure and muscle spasms, appropriate drugs and antitoxin serum, destroying poison, are prescribed. In the first 12 hours after the bite, the patient is forbidden to take any food. In severe scorpionism (as the scorpion sting is called in medical terminology), the patient is provided with blood circulation and airway patency with the simultaneous use of drugs, which are aimed at eliminating shock and dehydration.

“Phenobarbital”, “Diazepam” are assigned, adrenoreceptors - drugs that block symptoms arising from the effect of the poison.

It is noteworthy that the deadly poison of scorpion does not pose any danger to the latter, while in humans it can cause paralysis and swelling of the brain.

The consequences of meeting with a scorpion

A scorpion bite if the latter is not poisonousIt has serious consequences for the body, in mild cases it even looks like a bee. Small swellings at the site of injury can remind of an unpleasant life moment, which will disappear in just a couple of days. In severe cases (for example, if a tree scorpion bites), the poison can enter the bloodstream, cause a severe form of allergy, and even cause a lethal outcome.

Очень опасен укус скорпиона, последствия которого may be simply unpredictable, for people with weakened immune systems, old people and children. It is worth knowing that the development of poisoning depends on the height of the lesion: the lower the bite, the less likely the occurrence of serious reactions.

It is useful

Приблизительно 95 % случаев летальных исходов и 80% of severe poisonings are recorded after meetings with the thick-tailed representatives of the species - androctonus (from ancient Greek "killing men") living in forests and deserts of North Africa. The bite of a scorpion, the treatment of which can sometimes turn into a huge problem, is insensitive due to the presence in the venom of strong neurotoxins, which have a toxic effect on the nervous system and heart. The poison of such an insect leads to death within 7 hours from the moment of defeat. In humans, there is severe intoxication, the child suffers from asthma. In this case, life can only be saved by antidote.

Water scorpion - scorpion?

The namesake of a scorpion is a water scorpion living inponds with sedentary water - can also cause trouble to a person. In fact, it is a bug resembling the appearance of its southern counterpart. He bites the same pain, but is not dangerous. No special treatment is necessary; itching and discomfort can be relieved by applying a cold to the bite site and treating it with an antiseptic.

Scorpio - an insect, always calling to itselfincreased interest. Mysterious and inaccessible, he bears on his sharp sting a mortal danger to man. Therefore, when meeting with such a representative of the world of fauna, one should maintain composure and try to avoid the bite as much as possible.