False widow spider bite victim felt finger 'would explode' with pain

Crystal Rudd needed surgery after being bitten by a false widow spider

A woman who underwent emergency surgery after being bitten by a venomous spider said she felt as though her finger would "explode".

Crystal Rudd's hand ballooned in size a few days after she used a sterile pin to pop a painful pimple on her finger.

The 28-year-old later experienced "excruciating" pain spreading up her arm as a result of the incident.

Medics told the mother of three her experience was due to a false widow spider bite.

Ms Rudd, from Spalding, Lincolnshire, said after noticing the pimple on 25 March, she went to A&E where staff suspected a horsefly bite.

She was prescribed antibiotics and told to take antihistamines but by 1 April the pain had intensified and she was unable to move her finger.

The noble false widow spider has spread rapidly in Ireland in recent years

She added: "My whole hand started to go red it was really puffy. I then started to have pain in my wrist and eventually my elbow.

"I had to sleep with my arm in the air just to try and ease it because whenever I lowered it down all the blood gushed to my hand and it felt like it would explode."

After going back to the hospital a day later she was told by a doctor that it was a false window spider bite and would need to have surgery.

How common are spider bites in the UK?

Bites from spiders in the UK are uncommon, but some native spiders - such as the false widow spider - are capable of giving a nasty bite.

Spider bites leave small puncture marks on the skin, which can be painful and cause redness and swelling.

Some spiders bites can cause you to feel or be sick, sweating and dizziness. Bites can also become infected or cause a severe allergic reaction in rare cases.

Get medical help immediately if you have any severe or worrying symptoms after a spider bite.

Source: NHS website

She was operated on the next day and doctors cut open her finger to clean and remove the infection around the knuckle joint.

Mrs Rudd said if it had not been for the advice of her grandmother Thelma Gowland the outcome could have been much worse.

She said the 86-year-old, who died from bowel cancer only days later, had encouraged her to go back to the hospital.

"That was the last conversation I had with her before she deteriorated and to have her say that, then it feels like it was a sign because she knew."

Doctors initially believed the bite was from a horsefly

Mrs Rudd said she was hopeful there would be no lasting damage caused to her finger but urged other people to be vigilant.

"I went to A&E very early on but only really because my nan encouraged me to. Some people may not go for even longer and who knows how much worse it could end up being?"