sting reaction

[always weeding]

got stung last night through my suit.didnt feel too bad. this is the 4th sting i have had so far,the first one swelled up on my ankle the other two were fine but this one i was stung on my right lower arm.

my right hand has swelled up and has started to swell my fingers and they look like sausages now. my arm is swollen,very hard and has blistered. not too much pain though.

any thoughts?

 

[village girl]

got stung last night through my suit.didnt feel too bad. this is the 4th sting i have had so far,the first one swelled up on my ankle the other two were fine but this one i was stung on my right lower arm.

my right hand has swelled up and has started to swell my fingers and they look like sausages now. my arm is swollen,very hard and has blistered. not too much pain though.

any thoughts?

i think i would get a medical opinion as always best to play it safe, i hope you are soon recoverd

 

[MartinL]

Only the fourth sting, not been at this long then?

Wouldn,t be too worried about the swelling, but blisters???
Probably something to brighten your Doctors day tomorrow.
Let us all know if it drops off!

 

[VEG]

Swelling is normal but blisters are not.

 

[Luminos]

Only the fourth sting, not been at this long then?

Wouldn,t be too worried about the swelling, but blisters???
Probably something to brighten your Doctors day tomorrow.
Let us all know if it drops off!

Bit difficult to type with sausages

 

[meidel]

definitely you should seek medical opinion - I was previously lulled into a false sense of - right after so many stings i've now developed immunity - no reaction to stings on hands on inspections, only to be stung on the edge of one hand one evening outside the apiary and arm ballooned up a day later - I realised that the few times I'd been stung during inspection was when I'd accidentally squished a bee when manouvering frames so those must have been nurse bees with not much venom.
The sting with a punch was on the periphery of the apiary so it must've been an older bee with a more venomous sting.

 

[Outlander]

Only the fourth sting, not been at this long then?

Wouldn,t be too worried about the swelling, but blisters???
Probably something to brighten your Doctors day tomorrow.
Let us all know if it drops off!

I'm on sting number seven from yesterday. My best one was on my toe, painful. Ear lobe painful as well. Thumb was nasty but no sausage there. Back of wrist this one was also quite painful, swelled up, my arm was very tight and hand swelled a little as well but still no sausages. this sting was the one that taught me always suite up how ever cute the little cluster of bees looks and how ever easy it looks to put them in the box.

 

[Luminos]

For goodness' sake, Outlander, stop going on about your sausage...

 

[Outlander]

For goodness' sake, Outlander, stop going on about your sausage...

I didn't, I didn't mention the bee in my trousers. Now that one was really scary.

 

[always weeding]

just been to the hospital and the nurse reckons that i have had a reaction. i am sure that i am not alergic as the paing and swelling is confined to my arm and hand. got some anti biotics. she says that my reactions will get worse with each sting but i am going to have to see how i go and see if react again.
the second two stings wernet a problem and were just itchy so i am conident that this is just a one off (hopefully)

i thought that an allergic reaction was a reaction elsewhere on the body with sever types affecting breathing and eyes etc

 

[Heather]

Antibiotics! What was infected?? Do you mean antihistamine- I hope so- but have known a numpty prescribe antibiotics before now when a neighbour got stung on a lip and had swollen mouth. I gave her an ice lolly- worked quite well-

Yes, full reaction- your whole body would tell you- but this is a warning- wear better suit and gloves maybe?

 

[Karol]

there are four/five different types of allergic reaction. Anaphylaxis is type I. Other reactions involve complex biological processes which need to be 'primed' and are therefore worse next time round. Bee venom has lots of different components and reactions may be specific to one or more components. Infections including MRSA have been and are well documented. Better to treat a suspected infection than risk amputation.

 

[drstitson]

"just been to the hospital and the nurse reckons that i have had a reaction. i am sure that i am not alergic as the paing and swelling is confined to my arm and hand. got some anti biotics. she says that my reactions will get worse with each sting but i am going to have to see how i go and see if react again.
the second two stings wernet a problem and were just itchy so i am conident that this is just a one off (hopefully)

i thought that an allergic reaction was a reaction elsewhere on the body with sever types affecting breathing and eyes etc"

From your posts:

YOU HAD A LOCALLY SEVERE ALLERGIC REACTION. NOT A SEVERE SYSTEMIC ALLERGIC REACTION OR ANAPHYLAXIS OR SHOCK.

IMHO Antibiotics should not have been prescribed given the clear history (although are you sure it was a bee sting and not a horsefly that got you while out at the apiary). infection takes time to develop. rapid swelling = sting (or bite). The "blistering" sounds a bit odd but anyway....

Sting reaction varies with site, amount of venom injected etc etc. i get anything anything from nothing to a swollen face or limb.

yes you MAY get progressively worse stings BUT most likely not. only time will tell.

DOI: recently scared pants off local volunteer ambulance team when i calmly commandeered their ambulance to give OH oxygen and iv piriton (iv adrenaline handy in pocket just in case) for a severe systemic reaction/anaphylaxis (BUT NOT SHOCK - haemodynamically sound).
This was result of a sting to scalp - with little local swelling so presumably straight into a vessel given site.

will try to remember to post nice pictures of proper whole body urticarial rash at weekend.

 

[drstitson]

"wear better suit and gloves maybe?"

more good advice from heather - get some long nitriles (or marigolds) and make sure suit is washed regularly (especially after stings).

and think about the circumstances of the stings? bees annoyed for an understandable reason, clumsy handling etc. etc.

 

[MattC]

drstitson- you had iv adrenaline ready?

Shurely shome mishtake... In anything other than a closely monitored hospital situation (and even then, not often outside of a cardiac arrest) I understood intraMUSCULAR (im) was the only way to go.

(Just in case anyone reading this ever tries anything silly with an epipen... they go into muscle, NOT vein)

But otherwise, yes, the only really important distinction from the beekeeper's POV is that between a local, and a systemic, reaction. The former may need medical attention if severe or prolonged (eg if infected), but it's not usually an emergency and certainly no reason to give up beekeeping. While the latter is/could be.

 

[John_W]

Blisters

I think you may find the anti-biotics were prescribed due to the blistering?

Blistering can leave raw exposed skin, prone to infection.

I would defenitely say, be mindful for future reactions.

 

[drstitson]

quite right matt - the iv is a typo that slipped in during editing. But yes i do have ampoules of adrenaline in fridge at home.

 

[Swarm]

I have a theory the body has some sort of 'system memory'.

I was stung on the ear while feeding back in April/May - swelling to ear and right side of neck and throat.
Received multiple stings a week ago, all to left arm below elbow, yet the first place to show reaction - itching, redness, swelling and raised nettle rash type blotches - on right side of neck and throat again. My arm ballooned, of course but the neck area settled soon after.

 

[drstitson]

"I have a theory the body has some sort of 'system memory'. "

you might be right. perhaps that might explain why vaccination works!!!!!

 

[Swarm]

Yeah right. My point being there was no reason for a reaction other than to the new stings, not an area stung months ago.