health
An Atlanta musician was just days away from losing his life after losing his leg after being bitten by a brown spider last month.
singer-songwriter Gabe Lastman He said Thursday that he did not know where or exactly when the venomous spider bit him. He said he initially thought it was a “mosquito bite or something.”
“I started scratching it a lot and it started changing color,” the 30-year-old recalled in a phone interview. “I thought he had hit his foot because it looked like a bruise.”
The pop-R&B artist first noticed the bite around August 18 and felt it gradually worsened from there. He performed at a gala the next day, but he felt unwell and went straight from the gig to the hospital.
Medical staff quickly determined that his leg was infected, but the diagnosis was confirmed the next day when an infectious disease specialist examined him.
Rustman was hospitalized for five days, undergoing multiple blood tests and receiving large doses of antibiotics and other medications.
Before he was released, medical staff told him that if he had sought help later, his leg could have been amputated or he could have died.
“They said if I had come a few days later, it would have spread even further,” he says. “So I just limped and waited until I couldn’t walk anymore. I couldn’t put any strain on my legs.”
“It was really scary,” Lastman added. “I feel very blessed and grateful that I was able to finish on my own.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, brown recluse spiders are most common in the Midwest and South.
“The venom of brown recluse can destroy skin tissue (dermal necrosis) and cause severe lesions.” says the CDC. “This skin lesion requires professional attention.”
Rustman says he is not yet fully back to normal and has not yet been able to perform since being hospitalized. There is still dry, dead skin around his legs and scars from bite marks.
Gaylord Lopez, Managing Director of the Georgia Poison Center. told WSB TV His facility sees about three to five suspected brown whale bite cases each month.
“When these little creatures get hold of you, they can bite and punch you,” he added. “You don’t even realize you’ve been bitten until a few hours later.”