How to Treat a Small Spider Bite

Spider bites can be quite annoying and even a little bit painful. They can itch, burn, or just flat out irritate you. Some of the more serious bites can cause muscle spasms, vision loss, and some other really ugly symptoms. It can be hard to identify the type of spider that bit you, so this article aims at treating the symptoms from the most common spider bites.

Instructions

1. 

   First make sure your wound is a spider bite. The best way to know is to have seen the spider when you were bitten. Since this is rarely the case, try to look closely and see if you can see small puncture wounds. A spider bite will sometimes have little puncture wounds, but these wounds can be difficult to see because spiders have small and flimsy fangs that have trouble piercing the skin. To make matters more complicated, these wounds often disappear after a few hours. If you have been bitten, try to identify the spider that may have bitten you. It is important to note that there are very few deadly spiders in the U.S. and most will only cause irritation, so you can go about treating most bites in a general manner.

2. 

   Once you ready to treat the bite, the best thing to do is the gently clean the wound. Warm soap and water will clean out the area and help to prevent an infection. Once you have washed out the area, don't touch it! Scratching or touching the wound will only irritate it, and could very likely make it worse. If you have to, apply a bandage to stop yourself from scratching it. It if it is a spider bite, it might become slightly numb and even a little bit sore.

3. 

   Since the bite is very likely to itch, it might also be beneficial to put some cream on the bite that will prevent itching. There are certain creams that are designed for insect bites and the like, but really almost any cream that is labeled to treat itching will work effectively.

4. The last thing you need to do is monitor the bite for a few days. If it appears to get worse or it becomes more painful it's time to see a doctor. The only time to really worry about a spider bite is if the person who has been bitten seems to have an allergic reaction.