Our most common local stinging insects are yellow jackets and bees. Yellow jackets are attracted to our delicious picnic food and are more aggressive than bees. They sting defensively when they feel that their nests are threatened. They also sting when stepped on, sat upon, or have in some way been provoked. If one is being attacked by many bees or yellow jackets, it is best to vacate the area and run away as fast as possible. These insects are capable of flying up to 15 miles per hour and pursuing for distances of 50 to 100 yards. So don’t run too slow or stop too soon!
Yellow jackets can sting multiple times and leave no stingers in its victim. The honey bee sacrifices its life with its sting because it leaves the stinger and part of its abdomen with the venom sack attached to the skin of the victim. This stinging apparatus continues injecting venom into its victim for up to one minute after the sting. This is why the new accepted method to remove the stinger is just to pull it out with your finger tips as fast as possible. Trying to take the time to find something to scrape off the stinger as was previously recommended just wastes time and allows more venom to be injected at the sting site. Tests have proven that pinching out a stinger doesn’t force out more venom.
Stings are exceptionally painful. The best local treatment is to immediately place an ice pack on the sting site for up to several hours. Home remedies such as applying pastes of meat tenderizer, clay, toothpaste, aspirin and baking soda, have no proven benefit. Taking an antihistamine such as Benadryl by mouth, may help with itching.
A local toxic reaction to the venom occurring within hours to days after the sting may involve redness and swelling of just a small area around the sting or a much larger reaction often involving an entire arm or leg. As bad as this may seem, it is not serious and not life threatening and will resolve on its own in a matter of days. These reactions are sometimes mistaken for a secondary infection but this is very rarely the case and antibiotics are hardly ever necessary. A sting on the face may cause worrisome swelling but is not dangerous. A sting inside the mouth or throat however can be quite serious and needs emergency treatment promptly.
Almost every person who is stung will have at least a mild reaction around the sting site. Less than one percent of the population will have a severe allergic reaction.
Serious allergic reactions may occur within minutes or up to several hours after the sting. Usually the more serious the reaction, the sooner the symptoms begin. For those who have suffered a serious reaction to a sting I would recommend a consultation with your doctor who may recommend allergy shots to make one less sensitive. A self injectable adrenaline kit such as an “Epipen” may be prescribed to those who have had a very serious prior sting.
What to do when stung:
1 Pull stinger out as fast as possible by any method. Using fingers is now allowable.
2 Remove self from vicinity of stinging insects as fast and far as possible.
3 Apply ice compresses to sting.
4 Take Benadryl by mouth as soon as possible
5 Call 911 if you experience:
- Swollen tongue or throat.
- Difficulty swallowing.
- Tight breathing.
- Feeling faint.
- Severe hives.
- Terry Hollenbeck, M.D., is a retired urgent care physican at Palo Alto Medical Foundation Santa Cruz in Scotts Valley. Readers can view previous columns on his website, valleydoctor.wordpress.com, or e-mail [email protected].
