REGARDING           Immune Reactions to Stings
 
So much has recently been written on this topic that I'll follow up with a new
post title.  On Tues, 9/24, Dave Cawley reported on a large swelling of his
forearm following a sting to his wrist, and wondered what could have caused
such a reaction.  On Wednesday, 9/25, Tom Elliott related a similar incident
following a number of stings to his ankles.  And finally, on Thursday, 9/26,
Morten Petersen explained that reactions to stings fall in three groups, small
local reactions (the majority of our cases, fortunately), large local
reactions, and "allergic" reactions (systemic reactions).  Actually, all of
these reactions are technically known as allergic reactions, differing only in
degree.  What Dave and Tom experienced fall into the second of these
categories, the large local reaction, and are very typical of this kind of
response.
 
Most of the time, our reactions are the small local kind, and with continued
exposure (at least 100 stings/year) will diminish in intensity with time.
Occasionally, the other two will be experienced, and should be treated with
extreme respect.  The large local reaction is a warning sign that your body
may be developing a dangerous overreaction to bee venom.  The systemic
reaction is far more serious  - it can kill you.  For this reason, it is of
utmost importance that *every* beekeeper get a prescription for Epipen
(injectible epinephrine solution) and keep it at hand whenever you work your
bees or especially when you allow someone of unknown sensitivity around your
bees.  The systemic reaction can knock a person unconscious within *three to
five minutes*, can totally restrict ones airway (choking one to death), can
depress respiration and pulse rate down to zero.  In short, it is nothing to
take lightly.
 
It also has been reported here that certain common anti-inflammatory drugs
(e.g., Ibuprofen) can diminish the ability of ones body to react normally to
stings.  Sometimes, a large local reaction may occur due to some totally
unknown reason; a beekeeper who has gone about ones business for years
suddenly develops it out of the blue.  One must act prudently, of course, not
giving an Epipen injection whenever a small local swelling occurs, but one
will rather quickly known when a sting reaction is getting out of hand, and
Epipen is the single treatment of choice for this situation.
 
Ted Fischer