21-year old Sydney man suffers redback spider bite on penis
2-month-old WA baby dies of suspected spider bite
Spiders in Australia continue to bite more people, killing a baby and injuring a man on a sensitive body part in the same day. The culprit behind the bite on the adult male victim was also a redback spider, the same species of arachnid which killed a 22-year-old Aussie man two weeks ago.
On Wednesday morning, the redback spider bit a 21-year-old Sydney man on his penis, reports The Daily Telegraph. The incident happened inside a portaloo in Kogarah when the victim sat down on a toilet bowl but forget to check it first. The victim, identified only as Jordan, is a tradie. He used the portaloo at the building site on Civic Avenue
The young man got himself to the St George Hospital for treatment at about 8:45 am. He is in a stable conditions. The availability of anti-venom for over 50 years had spared the life of spider bite victims, but they would still experience pain, swelling and elevated blood pressure because the spider’s venom stimulate the nerves around the bite, explains Associate Professor Julian White from Adelaide Women’s and Children’s Hospital.
Redback spiders bite about 2,000 people in Australia yearly. Bites on the genital were common about 80 years ago when Australians were still using outhouse toilets, adds White.
On the same day, a spider bit on the hand Lance Ryder, a two-month-old baby in Western Australia. His parents rushed the infant from Geraldton to Perth for treatment via the Royal Flying Doctor, but the baby died 10 hours after the bite, reports 9News.
However, doctors have not yet confirmed in the spider bite was the cause of Lance’s death. His parents opened an online crowdfunding page to raise funds for the baby’s funeral.
