Spider Bite Horror: British Man Contracts Flesh-Eating Disease After Deadly Attack

London: A 59-year-old British man from the Isles of Scilly narrowly avoided death after a seemingly minor spider bite escalated into a life-threatening crisis.

While resting at home on August 30, Nigel Hunt was bitten on the stomach by a potentially deadly spider. Initially, he experienced no pain and dismissed the bite. However, just four days later, while en route to a holiday in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, he fell gravely ill, according to a report in a UK daily.

Man Develops Flesh-Eating Disease After Spider Bite

He was urgently taken to the hospital, where doctors initially suspected an abscess and performed surgery on his stomach. However, further examination uncovered a far more severe issue—necrotizing fasciitis, a rare and deadly condition commonly known as "flesh-eating disease." He subsequently underwent emergency surgery, which ultimately saved his life.

Recounting his ordeal, Hunt said, ''On arriving at the airport and travelling through check-in we made our way to departures. At this point, everything seemed to deteriorate quite quickly from being sick in the departure lounge to having my head in a sick bag for most of the journey. On arrival at Sharm El Sheikh, we collected our belongings and made our way to the pharmacy for some antibiotics or something to help with the sickness. They prescribed a couple of things and the following day we went to the hospital to be prescribed the same medication.''

''The next two days started to get worse so we went to a different hospital in Hadaba where straight away I had blood tests and ultrasound scans. Then we waited a couple of hours for the doctor to check the results. He called us in saying it was a good job we had come in because the bite was from either a false widow or a brown recluse spider,'' he added.

What is Necrotising Fasciitis? 

According to the NHS website, necrotising fasciitis is a rare and life-threatening infection that can happen if a wound gets infected and it needs to be treated in a hospital straight away.

"I feel it's essential to alert everyone to be cautious and check for spiders," Hunt asserted. 

Man Loses One Eye In China After Fly Sat on His Face

Earlier in July, a man in China’s Guangdong had to remove his eyeball after he killed a fly that was sitting on his face for a while. The killing led to the spread of the infection in and around the eyeball region.

The man surnamed Wu after killing the fly, was in severe pain as his left eye became red, swollen, and painful. 

Wu also sought medical attention as he was diagnosed with seasonal conjunctivitis, but his condition worsened and his vision deteriorated dramatically.

Doctors told Wu that symptoms were caused by an infection that medication could no longer halt, resulting in his eye and surrounding areas becoming severely ulcerated. The insect involved was a drain fly, which is typically found in dark, damp areas of homes, including bathrooms, bathtubs, sinks, and kitchens.