A woman was forced to have surgery on her finger after what she thought was a spot turned out to be a false widow spider bite.
Crystal Rudd, 28, first noticed a painful pimple on her finger on 25 March and tried to pop it with a sterilised pin.
But the mum-of-three said the pain did not go away and she went to A&E a few days later where medics suspected it was a horsefly bite.
She was sent away with antibiotics and told to take antihistamines – but the swelling continued and the redness in her hand was beginning to spread to her arm.
By 1 April Ms Rudd was in so much pain she could not sleep and her finger was so tight and sore it felt like it was going to split open.
Ms Rudd, from Spalding, Lincolnshire, said: “The pain began to become excruciating. It began to grow bigger and bigger.
“I was prescribed stronger antibiotics but the pain was so bad that I couldn’t bend my knuckles properly and it was too painful to look after my children.
“I had to ask my eldest – who is eight – to help me get dressed because I couldn’t move my hand.
“The pain was down to my elbow, it was all around my forearm like it felt bruised and tender like I pulled a muscle.
“My finger where I was bit, it was angry red and very tight it felt like my finger was going to split open. It felt like my finger was going to explode.”
The next day her husband Stephen Rudd, 25, took her to Peterborough City Hospital.
Medics took blood and X-rayed her finger before telling her it was a false widow spider bite.
Ms Rudd was rushed for surgery on 3 April where doctors cut her finger open to clean and remove the infection around the knuckle join.
She said: “In A&E I saw a triage nurse who I showed the progression photos to.
“She said it looked like from the photos it’s getting better. I said it’s not and it was very painful but she suggested I go home and carry on the stronger antibiotics.
“I was in shock I didn’t know what to do. I wanted the pain to stop and I felt I wanted to cut my finger off to help as it was so tight and swollen.
“I asked if I could have someone else look.
She went on: “On the ward I had a doctor speak to me and he said ‘that looks like a false widow spider bite’.
“He said he doesn’t mess about and gets things done. He said I would have an operation, they wanted to cut from my knuckle to just past the bite to clean it and remove the infection and around the knuckle join.”
Ms Rudd was released a few days later but she still doesn’t’ have mobility in her hand as it is bandaged up.
She said she might need physiotherapy for her finger in the future.
Ms Rudd, a stay-at-home mother, said she would not want anyone else to go through the same terrifying ordeal and is urging people to be vigilant around spiders.
She said: “In recovery I woke for pain relief it felt horrible but when back on the ward I felt relief and I was glad it was done and the pain in arm, elbow had gone.
“The next day I had the doctor back in the morning he got a nurse to remove the bandage to have a look and change the dressing.
“I saw my finger I felt sick and was shocked how bad it looked.
“I wouldn’t want anyone to have to go through what I did being in that pain. Not being able to get dressed, cook, I wasn’t able to mother my children.
“I went to A&E very early on when I noticed in two days but some people may not and go for even longer than I did. People need to be vigilant.”
SWNS
