A rare cause of cellulitis (necrotic arachnidism): a report of two cases

Abstract

Bites from brown recluse spiders (Loxosceles reclusa) result in several clinical manifestations, causing painful, disfiguring necrotic ulcers and, uncommonly, severe systemic effects. We report two cases reports with necrotic arachnidism from Turkey. A 21-year-old man was admitted to our clinic with the complaints of pruritis, redness on his neck. He had a history of spider bite one day ago. A 52-year-old woman had a cellulitis with hemorrhagic lesion and superficial necrosis on her arm and had a history of spider bite one day ago. Based on these clinical and epidemiological findings, a diagnosis of necrotic arachnidism was suspected, and the diagnosis of necrotic arachnidism was confirmed with these typical skin lesions and spiders bites in histories of patients. The outcome of our patients were good after antihistaminic, antibiotic, analgesic and anti-inflammatory treatments. The brown recluse spider is notorious for its necrosis-inducing bite. Its venom contains a rare toxin, sphingomyelinase D, which activates the vascular endothelium and initiates a cascade of activation of neutrophils and granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor, resulting in tissue destruction. In many cases, diagnosis of spider bite is very difficult. Therefore, clinical and epidemiological findings, as well as a detailed history, may establish the diagnosis.