Bee stings/wasp stings.

[Twinmummyx2]

Bit confused by them.

My son was stung by a bumble bee last summer. he stood on it. we removed the sting and he was ok just a bit upset. an hour later after he went to bed he stareted screaming and vomited brown stuff. He also had a rash all over his face, neck. We took him to the a&e dept at the hospital and they said he might have had a slight reaction to the sting. But usually when someone is allergic then they have the closing of throat type thing...so they were a bit confused and said to keep an eye on him if he was to get stung again.
He did get stung twice later in the summer but by wasps and he was fine with them (they seem to home down on him)..is this because they are wasps stings not bees??? or would you usually get the same reaction to both??

Now with the warm weather here and lots of flying things about my worry has started again.
Thought i'd ask on here if anyone else has encountered this sort of thing??

SO not sure whether he is allergic or not. But i do put down on medical school forms that he needs keeping an eye on if he gets stung....(feel a bit of a phoney tho incase he is not)

me.x

I would put down that he has an allergy just to be on the safe side

It could have been a reaction. What was the rash like? Imo i would say it sounded like a reacton and people can have delayed reaction, so i would be on my guard if i were you, incase he is and has a worse reaction next time. Carry on putting the same information on medical school from, saying that he may have had possible reaction to bee sting or possible allergy to bee sting. As at least they know about it.
Dont know if wasp and bee stings are same sorry. I would be inclined to say they are but i really do not know myself. I am a parent with experience of allergic reactions etc of an allergic child, not a professional, so can only give my opinion. Hope you get the answers you want and good luck.

Hi Twinmummy, not sure whether there is a difference in the 'ingredients' between bees and wasps. From what I know about allergies, it often isn't the first exposure that results in the massive allergic reaction (anaphylaxic shock) but normally the 2nd or 3rd or more (Not always the case). Anarak allert.... this reaction is caused by the body producing too much hystamin when in contact with an allergin. Anti-hystamins would be a good thing to keep on you. Were the hospital not too worried then?

I have a few friends whose children have severe allergies, they have epipens which they administer in the event of anyphalactic shock.

Main signs and symptoms

red blotching all over body
Swelling, especially dangerous in throat area
rapid pulse,
rapid breathing

Main care for this is to NOT let child lie down (if conscious), try and maintain an air way (tip head back), administer anti-hystamin or epipen....

I hope that helps and at the same time, I hope it hasn't scared you

It's such a shame that so many children seem to be affected by allergies these days

I've posted a link here that might be helpful

OK anorak alert over.

Hi there, thanks for your replies, i will check out that link in a sec.

The hospital didn't know what to say to be honest..they just said it could have been a reaction, but usually they are more severe ie..the shock thing you mentioned. They said to keep an eye on him for the next 24 hrs and bring him back if anything else happens. And then to def keep an eye on him if he is stung by a bee again.

His symptoms were red blotching on hi skin-there were no raised spots or anything.....it was the vomiting that startled me....it sounds horrid but it looked like diorreaha (SORRY [blush})..he hadn't eaten anything brown at all!

You say anti-hystamines? are these piriton tablets? He takes these anyway for hayfever.

Would love to know if wasps were classed as the same as bee stings because if thats the case he has been stung twice since by them and not a bother.

Will look at the link.

Thanks again.x

Just skimmed through it and it says bee OR wasp stings...so they must be different eh!?!
It also says the first time might not be the worst reaction....like you said they can get worse.......hmmm sounds suspicious dosen't it.
He is gonna be 12 this summer and out and about with his mates.....should i get one of those bracelets that says about allergies do you think???

No problem twinmummy, my pleasure.

Hmm, the hospital don't sound too helpful do they. Yes Piriton is an antihistamin. So your son already does have an allergy i.e. hayfever, I wonder if that makes him more vulverable to other allergens

Def keep the piriton on you at all times.

Hopefully you'll never need to use it for bee stings. If it's any help, I've only ever been stung by a bee once in my life, wasps, LOADS the evil buggers!!

Yes, definitely get a bracelet or necklace. I think you can get them for free, maybe the website can advise. Better to be safe than sorry. Also, might be worth asking about the epipen. Not sure what the rules are around that one, ie don't know if you have to have a case of anaphylaxis before they give you one.

LOL....i know what you mean...i have never been stung....so i am scared of the unknown....but i can't help but panic when they are about.....YUK YUK YUK!!

Thanks again .x

No problemo x x

actually.....also with his hayfever he sufferes with horrendous swelling of the eyes rather than itching or sneezing....so he is prone to puffiness when the reaction occurs. def gonna get a bracelet.

I am allergic to wasp stings, I was stung twice before I reacted though - years apart. I was stung on the ankle and my whole leg swelled up - it went tight and red and hot to touch and the pain if I dared to put it down was horrendous. I am terrified of wasps. Have been stung by a bee once - but didn't react - but who knows if I get stung by one again. I did go to hospital and they told me to use Piriton and keep my leg up until the swelling had gone dow - which took 2 days. I have so far managed to avoid the little buggers since - but if I got stung on the neck I dread to think what would happen. Some one may correct me here - but I thought the throat only closed up if the neck swelled up - and the neck only swelled up if you got stung on or around it. (I may be wrong though.)

hmmmm that is an interesting one.....i wonder if it does depend on where you were stung????
My Ds got stung under his foot. he was coming down a slide barefoot and stood on it ...he was stung twice in the head from the wasps..i do think hair gel attracts them...will need to find non-smelling gel!

Jaynerae, the throat swells up because of anaphylactic shock. Basically the entire body swells (incl the face!) not just the area that's been stung or exposed, so in other words, you could be stung on the foot, and if you're allergic (anaphylactic) you swell all over.

Anaphylaxia is basically a SEVERE allergic reaction.

Hope that helps