TREATMENT OF BLACK WIDOW SPIDER BITE

ABSTRACT To the Editor:— In relation to the observations made by Drs. Bell and Boone in The Journal, Dec. 8, 1945 related to black widow spider bites, I wish to state the following:Here, among us, there has been, for many years, a way of combating the intoxication caused by the sting or bite of the scorpion, spiders such as the black widow, and certain other intoxications caused by the bite or sting of other animals or insects not always readily discovered, by means of injections of a 10 per cent aqueous solution of magnesium or sodium thiosulfate as described in the National Formulary VII.The only caution required in a treatment of this nature is the application of successive doses until symptoms of intoxication disappear permanently. Apparently there is a neutralization of the toxins in a direct manner by means of the thiosulfate ions. As we are never able to