Latrodectism
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Latrodectism
Latrodectism () is the illness caused by the bite of ''Latrodectus'' spiders (the black widow spider and related species). Pain, muscle rigidity, vomiting, and sweating are the symptoms of latrodectism. There are several spider species all named black widow: southern black widow spider (''L. mactans''), the European black widow (''L. tredecimguttatus''), Western black widow spider (''L. hesperus''), Northern black widow spider (''L. variolus''). Other ''Latrodectus'' that cause latrodectism are the Australian redback spider (''L. hasselti''), the New Zealand katipō spider (''L. katipo'') and the South American '' Latrodectus corallinus'' and ''Latrodectus curacaviensis''. Several other members of the genus ''Latrodectus'' are not commonly associated with latrodectism including the cosmopolitan brown widow (''L. geometricus''). Signs and symptoms Symptoms of a bite depend on the amount of venom injected. A bite of ''Latrodectus'' may not injec ...
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Redback Spider
The redback spider (''Latrodectus hasselti''), also known as the Australian black widow, is a species of highly venomous spider believed to originate in South Australia or adjacent Western Australian deserts, but now found throughout Australia, Southeast Asia and New Zealand, with colonies elsewhere outside Australia. It is a member of the cosmopolitan genus ''Latrodectus'', the widow spiders. The adult female is easily recognised by her spherical black body with a prominent red stripe on the upper side of her abdomen and an hourglass-shaped red/orange streak on the underside. Females usually have a body length of about , while the male is much smaller, being only long. Mainly nocturnal, the female redback lives in an untidy web in a warm sheltered location, commonly near or inside human residences. It preys on insects, spiders and small vertebrates that become ensnared in its web. It kills its prey by injecting a complex venom through its two fangs when it bites, before wrap ...
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Katipō
The katipō (''Latrodectus katipo'') is an endangered species of spider native to New Zealand. It is one of many species in the genus ''Latrodectus'', such as the Australian redback (''L. hasseltii''), and the North American black widow. The species is venomous to humans, capable of delivering a potentially dangerous bite. It is a small to medium-sized spider, with the female having a round black or brown pea-sized body. Red katipō females, found in the South Island and the lower half of the North Island, are always black, and their abdomen has a distinctive red stripe bordered in white. In black katipō females, found in the upper half of the North Island, this stripe is absent, pale, yellow, or replaced with cream-coloured blotches. These two forms were previously thought to be separate species. The male is much smaller than the female and quite different in appearance: white with black stripes and red diamond-shaped markings. Katipō are mainly found living in sand dunes ...
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Latrodectus
''Latrodectus'' is a broadly distributed genus of spiders with several species that are commonly known as the true widows. This group is composed of those often loosely called black widow spiders, brown widow spiders, and similar spiders. However, the diversity of species is much greater. A member of the family Theridiidae, this genus contains 34 species, which include several North American "black widows" (southern black widow ''Latrodectus mactans'', western black widow ''Latrodectus hesperus'', and northern black widow ''Latrodectus variolus''). Besides these, North America also has the red widow ''Latrodectus bishopi'' and the brown widow ''Latrodectus geometricus'', which, in addition to North America, has a much wider geographic distribution. Elsewhere, others include the European black widow (''Latrodectus tredecimguttatus''), the Australian redback black widow (''Latrodectus hasseltii'') and the closely related New Zealand katipō (''Latrodectus katipo''), several differ ...
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Latrodectus Curacaviensis
''Latrodectus curacaviensis'' is a species of black widow spider, that belongs to the genus ''Latrodectus''. It is known as the South American black widow, Brazilian black widow or Araña del trigo. Description Like many black widow species, females are larger than males, growing up to 11–17 mm, with their body and legs black and red. Males are much smaller, known by their long legs, and white or brown color. ''Latrodectus curacaviensis'' is mainly nocturnal. It is not aggressive to humans, but females will attack to defend their egg sacs. It feeds on small insects. They have a distinct hourglass mark with a black diamond shape and four red triangles in a square. Bites are rare but dangerous. Distribution and habitat It has been reported in the Lesser Antilles and South America. It is usually found under logs, in sheds, stone fireplaces, near trash and debris. Venom The venom contains excitatory neurotoxins ( alpha-latrotoxins). Bites usually deliver only small amou ...
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Latrodectus Mactans
''Latrodectus mactans'', known as southern black widow or simply black widow, and the shoe-button spider, is a venomous species of spider in the genus ''Latrodectus''. The females are well known for their distinctive black and red coloring and for the fact that they will occasionally eat their mates after reproduction. The species is native to North America. The venom can cause pain and other symptoms, but is rarely fatal to healthy humans. Taxonomy ''Latrodectus mactans'' was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1775, placing it in the genus '' Aranea''. It was transferred to the genus ''Latrodectus'' in 1837 by Charles Walckenaer and is currently placed in the family Theridiidae of the order Araneae. The species is closely related to ''Latrodectus hesperus'' (western black widow) and '' Latrodectus variolus'' (northern black widow). Members of the three species are often confused with the genus '' Steatoda'', the false widows. Prior to 1970, when the current taxono ...
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Latrodectus Hesperus
''Latrodectus hesperus'', the western black widow spider or western widow, is a venomous spider species found in western regions of North America. The female's body is 14–16 mm (1/2 in) in length and is black, often with an hourglass-shaped red mark on the lower abdomen. This "hourglass" mark can be yellow, and on rare occasions, white. The male of the species is around half this length and generally a tan color with lighter striping on the abdomen. The population was previously described as a subspecies of '' Latrodectus mactans'' and it is closely related to the northern species '' Latrodectus variolus''. The species, as with others of the genus, build irregular or "messy" webs: unlike the spiral webs or the tunnel-shaped webs of other spiders, the strands of a ''Latrodectus'' web have no apparent organization. Female black widows have potent venom containing a neurotoxin active against a range of mammals (see latrodectism). In humans, symptoms of this venom include ...
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Latrodectus Tredecimguttatus
''Latrodectus tredecimguttatus'', also known as the Mediterranean black widow, or the European black widow, is a species in the genus ''Latrodectus'' of the widow spiders. It is commonly found throughout the Mediterranean region, ranging from southern Iberia to southwest and central Asia, hence the name. Specimens from central Asia are also known by the binomial name ''Latrodectus lugubris''; that name, however, is now considered improper, though it is still commonly found in the literature. ''Latrodectus tredecimguttatus'' was previously considered a subspecies of ''Latrodectus mactans''. Description ''L. tredecimguttatus'' is black in color, similar to most other widow species, and is identified by the thirteen spots which are found on its dorsal abdomen (the species name is Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) a ...
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Latrodectus Variolus
''Latrodectus variolus'', the northern black widow spider or northern widow, is a venomous species of spider in the genus ''Latrodectus'' of the family Theridiidae. The population is closely related to the southern black widow, ''Latrodectus mactans'', and the western black widow, ''Latrodectus hesperus'', of the genus. In North America, the species is commonly found in Middle Atlantic states (New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland). During the April–May mating season, it can travel north along the coast as far as Massachusetts. It is also found in Connecticut in the late summer, and rarely, in southern Ontario and southern Quebec, Michigan, and at least as far northwest as parts of Wisconsin. A bite may cause latrodectism, and requires medical attention in the case of increasingly severe discomfort or spreading local redness accompanied by severe pain. The LD-50 has been measured in mice as ; each spider contains about of venom. Unlike for the related ''Latrodectus mactans'', no an ...
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Brown Widow
''Latrodectus geometricus'', commonly known as the brown widow, brown button spider, grey widow, brown black widow, house button spider or geometric button spider, is one of the widow spiders in the genus ''Latrodectus''. As such, it is a 'cousin' to the more infamous ''Latrodectus mactans'' (black widow). ''L. geometricus'' has black and white patterns on the sides of its abdomen as well as an orange-yellow colored hourglass shape. Their eggs are easily identified by points that project from all over the egg sacs. ''L. geometricus'' are found all over the world, but are believed to originate in South America. Their bites, though painful, are not considered to be dangerous. Taxonomy ''L. geometricus'' derives its name from the geometric patterning on its abdomen. However, the spider's coloring can and does darken over time and the pattern may become obscured. Similar widows include the ''L. rhodesiensis'', a brown-colored relative of ''L. geometricus'' which is native to ...
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Acute Abdomen
An acute abdomen refers to a sudden, severe abdominal pain. It is in many cases a medical emergency, requiring urgent and specific diagnosis. Several causes need immediate surgical treatment. Differential diagnosis The differential diagnosis of acute abdomen includes: # Acute appendicitis # Acute peptic ulcer and its complications # Acute cholecystitis # Acute pancreatitis # Acute intestinal ischemia (see section below) # Acute diverticulitis # Ectopic pregnancy with tubal rupture # Ovarian torsion # Acute peritonitis (including hollow viscus perforation) # Acute ureteric colic # Bowel volvulus # Bowel obstruction # Acute pyelonephritis # Adrenal crisis # Biliary colic # Abdominal aortic aneurysm # Familial Mediterranean fever # Hemoperitoneum # Ruptured spleen # Kidney stone # Sickle cell anaemia # Carcinoid Peritonitis Acute abdomen is occasionally used synonymously with peritonitis. While this is not entirely incorrect, peritonitis is the more specific term, refe ...
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Sweating
Perspiration, also known as sweating, is the production of fluids secreted by the sweat glands in the skin of mammals. Two types of sweat glands can be found in humans: eccrine glands and apocrine glands. The eccrine sweat glands are distributed over much of the body and are responsible for secreting the watery, brackish sweat most often triggered by excessive body temperature. The apocrine sweat glands are restricted to the armpits and a few other areas of the body and produce an odorless, oily, opaque secretion which then gains its characteristic odor from bacterial decomposition. In humans, sweating is primarily a means of thermoregulation, which is achieved by the water-rich secretion of the eccrine glands. Maximum sweat rates of an adult can be up to 2–4 liters per hour or 10–14 liters per day (10–15 g/min·m2), but is less in children prior to puberty. Evaporation of sweat from the skin surface has a cooling effect due to evaporative cooling. Hence, in hot we ...
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Tetanus
Tetanus, also known as lockjaw, is a bacterial infection caused by ''Clostridium tetani'', and is characterized by muscle spasms. In the most common type, the spasms begin in the jaw and then progress to the rest of the body. Each spasm usually lasts a few minutes. Spasms occur frequently for three to four weeks. Some spasms may be severe enough to fracture bones. Other symptoms of tetanus may include fever, sweating, headache, trouble swallowing, high blood pressure, and a fast heart rate. Onset of symptoms is typically three to twenty-one days following infection. Recovery may take months. About ten percent of cases prove to be fatal. ''C. tetani'' is commonly found in soil, saliva, dust, and manure. The bacteria generally enter through a break in the skin such as a cut or puncture wound by a contaminated object. They produce toxins that interfere with normal muscle contractions. Diagnosis is based on the presenting signs and symptoms. The disease does not spread betwee ...
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