Bee
Sting First Aid
Insects
in general cause a great deal of undue anxiety and many people
are frightening to the point of not wanting to explore the
outdoors. This is understandable if they have had a severe
or at worst, an anaphylactic reaction from bee or wasp stings.
Bee and wasp stings account for the majority of individuals
who experience severe allergic reactions. However the vast
majority only have local reactions. Please remember that honeybees
can only sting once. After they sting you, they fly away and
die because they have basically eviscerated themselves and
they usually leave part of their intestine along with the
stinger in the wound, as opposed to hornets and yellow jackets
which can sting numerous times.
Initial
signs and symptoms generally include immediate pain, followed
by redness and a wheal will develop at the sting site. These
can get rather large, even larger than a silver dollar, with
redness. This is a histamine reaction, or the body’s
reaction to the venom. It is not a reaction from the amount
of poison that was delivered, a common myth.
Bee
Sting Treatment
Treatment
for the majority of stings is very simple and consists of
cool compresses to the area, no ice. You want to remove the
stinger by either pulling it out or scraping it. There was
a lot of controversy regarding this, that if you pulled out
a stinger from a bee that is still pumping venom, you will
induce more venom. This has been studied at length and is
also a myth. It does not matter how you get the stinger out
as long as you remove it. The reason for that is it can cause
secondary infection.
Antihistamines
are helpful. Diphenhydramine is always in my pack when I am
in the outdoors. You can also pick up other antihistamines,
for example an H2 Blocker like Tagamet (generic name Cimetidine)
which can also be helpful. You want to observe the individual
for at least 24-hours. Most anaphylactic-type reactions will
occur within the first 3-4 hours, usually within the first
30 minutes, where you will see an individual with generalized
massive hives, itching, shortness of breath and difficulty
breathing. These are medical emergencies and patients need
to be transported immediately or as soon as possible as they
are potentially life-threatening. The question now arises,
should everyone carry an Epi-pen? Anyone can have a severe
allergic reaction at any point in their lifetime, whether
to a bee sting or to a new shampoo or soap product. If one
is spending quite a bit of time in the outdoors or you know
you are going to be out a week or so, even 3 days out to the
mountains or a remove area, it would be very advisable to
have an epi-pen. A Boy Scout leader once indicated to me that
none of the members of his troop had a history of anaphylactic
reaction. They were going out to Utah for a week that summer.
He was asking whether he should have an epi-pen available.
I told him absolutely yes, as we don’t know if one of
these children will have an allergic reaction should they
get stung by a bee, and why take the risk? Epi-pens are auto-injectible
pens which anyone can use. They do need a prescription written
in order to be carried. They are very easy to use. However
it is important that individuals know when to use them, and
they don’t just inject every time someone has a bee
sting. They should only be used when there are signs and symptoms
of a severe, anaphylactic type reaction.
Other
Information
Our
parent site, Survive Outdoors, offers some great additional
information on bee
stings. You can also find interesting bee
sting pictures.
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