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Emergency Medicine

Clinically Important Spiders in the United States

Worldwide, almost 4,000 genera comprise more than 40,000 known species of spiders; only two are of clinical importance in the United States.

Course Authors

Thomas C. Arnold, M.D., and Mark L. Ryan, Pharm.D.

Dr. Arnold is Professor and Chairman, Department of Emergency Medicine, and Dr. Ryan is Director of the Louisiana Poison Center, LSU Health Sciences Center, Shreveport, LA.

Within the past 12 months, Dr. Ryan has been a consultant to and on the Speakers Bureau for Nycomed. Dr. Thomas reports no commercial conflicts of interest.

Albert Einstein College of Medicine, CCME staff, and interMDnet staff have nothing to disclose.

 
Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this Cyberounds®, you should be able to:

  • List the presenting signs and symptoms of common spider envenomations in the United States

  • Discuss important aspects of the prehospital and hospital management of spider bite victims

  • Describe the indications for antivenom therapy after spider envenomation as well as its risks and benefits

  • Discuss the challenges associated with currently available antivenom products and the future direction of antivenom development.

 

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the sponsor or its publisher. Please review complete prescribing information of specific drugs or combination of drugs, including indications, contraindications, warnings and adverse effects before administering pharmacologic therapy to patients.

 

Please click below to accept the terms.

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