FUNNEL WEB SPIDER TOXICITY

Course overview

THERE ARE OVER 40 SPECIES OF FUNNEL-WEB SPIDERS, WITH 3 GENERA RESTRICTED TO AUSTRALIA, INCLUDING THE HADRONYCHE, ILLAWARRA, AND THE ATRAX. FUNNEL-WEB SPIDERS ARE MEDIUM TO LARGE IN SIZE AND ARE DARK IN COLOR, RANGING FROM BLACK TO BROWN. FUNNEL-WEB SPIDERS GET THEIR NAME FROM THEIR FUNNEL-SHAPED BURROWS THEY SPIN TO TRAP PREY. FUNNEL-WEB SPIDERS HAVE POWERFUL, SHARP FANGS THAT HAVE BEEN KNOWN TO PENETRATE FINGERNAILS AND SOFT SHOES. THEY ARE KNOWN TO BE AMONG THE MOST DANGEROUS SPIDERS IN THE WORLD. THIS ACTIVITY REVIEWS THE ETIOLOGY, PRESENTATION, EVALUATION, AND MANAGEMENT/PREVENTION OF FUNNEL WEB SPIDER VENOM TOXICITY, AND REVIEWS THE ROLE OF THE INTERPROFESSIONAL TEAM IN EVALUATING, DIAGNOSING, AND MANAGING THE CONDITION.