Sensitivity to bee stings may change with time.  Some of us get less
sensitive with repeated stings, others go the other way, sometimes very
rapidly.
 
Desensitization to bee stings as practiced by the medical community often
involves injections of small amounts of bee venom, which seems to work
better than the older extracts from whole bees.  The process is very
similar to that used to desensitize people allergic to pollen, dust, cats
and dogs, etc.  I know, I went through five years of the shots.
 
Usually, the medical folks conduct a skin test to determine the patient's
sensitivity before starting the process.  I know of one Mayo clinic
case in which a beekeeper's wife was so sensitive to bee stings that she
reacted badly to even the small amounts of venom used in the initial tests.
The doctors gave her a blood transfusion from a beekeeper who wasn't
affected by bee stings.  Then they started the desensitization series.
 
 
Among my crews, I have had students and employees who may go for years
without any reaction, and then one day suddenly swell, break out in
hives, get short of breath, etc.  Two of my friends also developed bad
reactions AFTER several years of working bees.  For my crews, so far the
tally is one that had to stop working bees, and two that occassionally
exhibited moderately severe responses.  The number of stings did not seem
to be a factor.
 
Medical test on these latter indicated that they were not "truly"
allergic, but they started carrying the bee sting kits.
 
A bit of a reaction is not uncommon in the spring among those of us who
work bees in cold climates and as such don't get stung in the winter.
 
What really scares me are the occassional commercial or hobbiest
beekeeper who demonstrates moderate to severe reactions, but continues to
work bees - claiming that things get better as the season progresses.  My
hunch is that they are conducting an uncontrolled desensitization (no
control over frequency and amount of the dose) - WHICH IS A VERY
DANGEROUS FORM OF SELF-TREATMENT.
 
Again, I refer people to the book I cited yesterday - Insects and Allergy
... by Claude Frazier and F.K. Brown.
 
Anecdotal stories of how I cured my allergy to bee stings may lead others
to think if she or he can do it, so can I.  You may not live to regret
that decision.
 
Jerry Bromenshenk
The University of Montana
[log in to unmask]
 
 
 
 On Mon, 28 Feb 1994, John Robert Bidleman wrote:
 
> I have had the exact opposite experience with frequency of stings. I
> wonder if you could clarify what you mean and why you believe it?
>
>              ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
>              :           [log in to unmask]             :
>              : Robert   Box 721 Healdsburg CA 95448 :
>              ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
>
> On Mon, 28 Feb 1994, Jane Power wrote:
>
> > I understand they worsen with exposure.
>
> While I'm sure I don't have the largest database to work from the persons
> I have talked to who work bees and have bad reactions, report an improvement.
>