Mystery Bug Bite Baffles Doctors After Man Wakes Up With Terrifying Bruises

#1 A routine chore left an Arizona man with a bug bite that caused a severe reaction.

#2 Thomas Jay and his wife Dee Petrov shared the traumatizing incident that resulted to tedious and excruciating days in the hospital.

#3 Thomas Jay said

He was taking out the trash from his home in Chandler, Ariz., approximately 40 km southeast of Phoenix when an insect he’d never seen before bit him. Within hours, the round bite started to swell and multiple dark, painful bruises spread across his left arm.

#4 He said the bite started off as a small circle on his left arm. His wife Deanna Petrov drew a circle around it to monitor its growth.

#5 “It doubled in size in an hour and a half,” said Petrov.

#6 His condition escalated quickly, prompting his wife to rush him to the nearest hospital.

#7 According to him, he suffered from severe itching and weakness in his arm.

#8 His wife, Dee Petrov, shared the incident on the Living Chandler Facebook page.

She quickly got responses from dozens of people urging Jay to see a doctor immediately.

#9 “We had 100 people (who) right away said don’t joke around, this is serious,” Petrov said.

#10 Over the course of a few days, Jay's reaction to the bite spread and became more severe, covering his arm in large, painful bruises.

Doctors have not been able to determine what kind of bug bit Jay, and are awaiting biopsy results for further clues.

#11 The Jays did some internet sleuthing and believes the bite may have come from a solpugid (camel spider) or a brown recluse spider.

#12 The couple said:

Within a 24-hour period, Jay was transported from an urgent care center to two different hospitals, where doctors and toxicologists were stumped.

#13 Camel Spider Bite Identification

The best way to accurately identify a camel spider bite is to properly identify the creature that inflicted the bite. Once the camel spider is positively identified as the creature that caused the bite, the following camel spider bite signs and symptoms may also be present.

1. An intense pain – A camel spider bite is very painful because of the creature’s chelicerae which act and look like crab pincers.

2. Swelling – Because the bite from a camel spider causes trauma to the surrounding tissue, the swelling will follow as the normal inflammatory response of the body takes place.

3. Bleeding – Depending on the size of the camel spider, and the area was bitten, the bite may produce mild to intense bleeding.

#14 Camel Spider Bite First Aid and Treatment

Because camel spiders are non-venomous, the wound created by the bite can be treated and given first aid just like any other similar wound caused by other means.

#15 Steps for First Aid and Treatment

1. Wash the area with saline solution or mild soap and water. Camel spider bites do not have venom, but they can be full of bacteria which may cause infection later on. It is therefore important to cleanse camel spider bites as thoroughly as possible.

2. Apply an antibiotic ointment.

3. Depending on the size of the wound, a bandage may be applied to prevent dirt from getting into it.

4. Observe the wound. If possible, get an anti-tetanus shot.

5. If any infection or fever develops, or any other symptoms which are not listed amongst the expected symptoms appear, seek immediate medical attention.

A non-complicated camel spider bite will fully heal in a couple of weeks, just like a normal wound or laceration sustained from sharp objects.

#16 Jay’s arm is showing some improvement, but he’s still suffering from the bite.

“There’s still an excruciating pain that’s in the arm and it moves from different places at different times,” he said.