Book Description
This digital document is an article from Medical Update, published by Benjamin Franklin Literary & Medical Society, Inc. on October 1, 1996. The length of the article is 819 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Getting the bite out of a bee sting. (includes related information on snakebite)
Author: Edwin W. Brown
Publication: Medical Update (Newsletter)
Date: October 1, 1996
Publisher: Benjamin Franklin Literary & Medical Society, Inc.
Volume: v20Issue: n4Page: p2(2)

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Book Description
This digital document is an article from Southern Medical Journal, published by Southern Medical Association on November 1, 2003. The length of the article is 5288 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Allergic reactions to insect stings and bites.(Featured CME Topic: Allergy)
Author: John E. Moffitt
Publication: Southern Medical Journal (Refereed)
Date: November 1, 2003
Publisher: Southern Medical Association
Volume: 96Issue: 11Page: 1073(7)

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Book Description
We've recently discussed acute abdominal pain.But did you know the same signs and symptoms can occur in a patient suffering from insect bites and anaphylactic shock - a condition that kills more people each year than lightning? Insect bites and anaphylactic shock treatment are rapidly becoming a regular part of patient care, especially in the southern and southwestern United States.Duration (22:59) ... Read more

Book Description
A detailed manual (with 15 photographs and illustrations) on how to avoid the stings and bites of the Southwest's dangerous arachnids-and what to do if you don't! A homeowner's guide to eradicating these critters without resorting to pesticides. The book includes a detailed description of the history and habits of the critter, a section on the Black Widow of interest to residents outside the Southwest, an extensive scientific bibliography, and a full listing of the nation's Poison Control Centers. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

This book was so awful and I hardly know where to begin.
Near the beginning of the book the author makes it painfully obvious he knows next to nothing about scorpions or ecosystems with his statement that "The world does not need scorpions" and goes on to suggest that snakes, scorpions, spiders, etc. should be wiped from the face of the earth.In truth, scorpions eat insects which are far more damaging to human health and economics than scorpions ever were.

Throughout the book scorpions are frequently referred to as "poisonous" when in fact they are venomous, and in a few places it even refers to scorpion "bites" instead of stings (scorpions do not bite).These may seem to be minor details but considering the author's credentials such oversights are a little disturbing.

The book was also inconsistent and confusing.The first few chapters make scorpions out to be most dreadful creatures that "wish you no good" and exist only to torment humans, then the author goes on to explain you don't need to fear them, and then reiterates how horrible they are.

The section on black widows was not nearly as bad as the scorpion section, but the author does recommend using pesticides to eliminate them.The hazards of using pesticides in and around the home far outweigh the hazards of having black widows present.Black widows, like scorpions, feed on those insects which pose a greater threat to human health, for instance the mosquitoes which carry West Nile Virus.Even if you cannot bring yourself to catch the spider in a cup for release outside, they are easy enough to squash with a flyswatter and avoid the lingering poisons of pesticides.

As someone who very much likes spiders and scorpions and keeps them as pets (including the "deadly" and "poisonous" species the book focuses on), I found much of this book very offensive and was often quite saddened by it.I will admit however that the chapter on "scorp proofing", done without pesticides,actually contains some pretty good advice. The rest of the book, however, contains little more than hype and misinformation.

Not worth the paper it is printed on
This book is an example of an inflated ego believing it is an expert on everything. The author claims expertise due to the fact that he lives in an area where scorpions also live. He writes:

'Ten years of living in the high desert country of Arizona provided my background experience for studying ways of handling the scorpion menace. Let's be honest: they are a menace to the comfort and safety of adults and to the lives of children, the elderly or infirm and all friendlier domestic life forms-our pets.'

The author describes scorpions as 'killing machines' and 'lethal', and yet in the final pages he admits that no scorpion has killed anyone in the United States within the last thirty years! Meanwhile we read in the newspaper many times a month about how one of our 'friendlier domestic life forms-our pets' has taken the life of yet another human.

Oddly the author recommends, since scorpions are so 'lethal', that every one (along with cobras, water mocassins, etc.) be exterminated. According to the numbers (scorpions - 0, dogs - manyfold) if we were to follow his logic we should exterminate our dogs instead (not that I'm a fan of that idea either).

The book shows many pictures of scorpions identified as the 'lethal' bark scorpion. Instead, the pictures are of a Vaejovis species, a different, and essentially harmless type. Further, though the scorpion is pictured 'on the porch', 'on the ceiling' etc., the images are clearly of a dead scorpion whose legs are in identical position throughout. No doubt the picture of it on the ceiling was taken on a sheet of paper then the image was turned upside down. The captions on the photos are about as accurate as the rest of the 'information' in the book.

We currently keep several thousand live scorpions of various species. I have surveyed the bark scorpions of the Grand Canyon on scientific expedition. We deal with live scorpions on a daily, sometimes hourly basis. When asked her opinion of the book my girlfriend read it through carefully and finally pointed to a small section and said,'This paragraph isn't so bad'. Unfortunately it was the only one.

If you want a book chock full of misinformation, hype, and paranoia, this book is for you. If you'd like an accurate depiction of scorpions look elsewhere. I'd recommend buying this book only if one is already quite familiar with scorpions and is interested in a bit of humor in the manner that old black and white movies about arachnids are often so bad they're good.

The only reason I gave this book two stars instead of one is because it made us laugh several times and one can never have too much laughter.

Oddly the author is apparently a psychiatrist yet admits a virulent phobia of scorpions. Physician, heal thyself. And stop writing 'books'.

Interesting and full of good ideas
This book has some good suggestions on ways to keep these pests out ofyour house.Written in an informal, easy-to-read style. ... Read more

Book Description
This digital document is an article from The Forensic Examiner, published by Thomson Gale on December 22, 2007. The length of the article is 9381 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Necrotic spider or tick bite? Hobo spider venom or ehrlichial bacteria?
Author: Cornelia Richardson-Boedler
Publication: The Forensic Examiner (Magazine/Journal)
Date: December 22, 2007
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 16Issue: 4Page: 42(14)

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Book Description
This digital document is an article from Family Practice News, published by International Medical News Group on May 1, 2004. The length of the article is 888 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Treatment varies for severe Loxosceles spider bite: clinical features of bites discussed.(Clinical Rounds)
Author: Doug Brunk
Publication: Family Practice News (Magazine/Journal)
Date: May 1, 2004
Publisher: International Medical News Group
Volume: 34Issue: 9Page: 15(1)

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Book Description
This digital document is an article from Southern Medical Journal, published by Southern Medical Association on July 1, 2004. The length of the article is 1907 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Hand-foot syndrome in a patient with multiple fire ant stings.(Case Report)
Author: Marcus E. Carr
Publication: Southern Medical Journal (Refereed)
Date: July 1, 2004
Publisher: Southern Medical Association
Volume: 97Issue: 7Page: 707(3)

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Book Description
This digital document is an article from Dermatology Nursing, published by Jannetti Publications, Inc. on December 1, 1999. The length of the article is 4845 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

From the author: The bite of the brown recluse spider (BRS) is the most severe arthropod cause of necrotic skin lesions. The severity of cutaneous injury due to BRS bites vary from mild erythema to severe necrosis. Rarely, severe systemic reactions occur. Diagnosis may be difficult, since the victim may not feel the bite or see the spider. Treatment must be individually tailored. Proper treatment, reassurance, and rapid followup are helpful in reducing the cutaneous and psychologic discomfort associated with BRS bites.

Citation Details
Title: Brown Recluse Spider Bites.
Author: Hunter H. Sams
Publication: Dermatology Nursing (Refereed)
Date: December 1, 1999
Publisher: Jannetti Publications, Inc.
Volume: 11Issue: 6Page: 427

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Book Description
This digital document is an article from Family Practice News, published by International Medical News Group on October 1, 2004. The length of the article is 767 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Bite wound care depends on species of biter; dog bites are the most common, but cat and human bites carry a much higher risk of infection.(Infectious Diseases)
Author: Kerri Wachter
Publication: Family Practice News (Magazine/Journal)
Date: October 1, 2004
Publisher: International Medical News Group
Volume: 34Issue: 19Page: 27(1)

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Book Description
This digital document is an article from Internal Medicine News, published by Thomson Gale on March 1, 2006. The length of the article is 590 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Guidelines not followed in managing systemic reactions to insect bites.
Author: Betsy Bates
Publication: Internal Medicine News (Magazine/Journal)
Date: March 1, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 39Issue: 5Page: 4(1)

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Book Description
This digital document is an article from Pediatric News, published by International Medical News Group on October 1, 2002. The length of the article is 461 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: How to identify tick or spider bites, anthrax. (Pain and Swelling are Key Discriminators).
Author: Nancy Walsh
Publication: Pediatric News (Magazine/Journal)
Date: October 1, 2002
Publisher: International Medical News Group
Volume: 36Issue: 10Page: 17(1)

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Book Description
This digital document is an article from Children's Playmate, published by Benjamin Franklin Literary & Medical Society, Inc. on April 1, 1997. The length of the article is 458 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Are all snake bites harmful? Do snake bites heal OK, or do they leave a scar? (includes related bite prevention tips)(Ask Doctor Cory)
Author: Cory SerVaas
Publication: Children's Playmate (Magazine/Journal)
Date: April 1, 1997
Publisher: Benjamin Franklin Literary & Medical Society, Inc.
Volume: v69Issue: n3Page: p34(2)

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