![]() ![]() They must always wear protective clothing when collecting swarms or honey. This will reduce but not eliminate the risk of a serious reaction.īeekeepers should take special care. The sac should be flicked upwards with one quick scrape of the fingernail or a credit card. ![]() ![]() Avoid squeezing the venom sac as this will only inject more venom. Because it takes a few minutes for all the venom to be injected, quick removal of the stinger is important. The bee leaves its stinger (with venom sac attached) in the skin. The risk of a serious reaction is low, and most patients successfully complete the course. Anyone receiving immunotherapy has to remain in the allergy clinic for a period of time after the treatment in case they suffer an allergic reaction.Some centres may have different treatment schedules. Once this has been achieved, you may be asked to return every month for injections for up to three years.The initial phase lasts for around 8 – 12 weeks, during which the very low starting dose is slowly increased to reach the required maintenance levels.Immunotherapy treatment takes a considerable amount of time and has two phases, known as “initial” (or “up-dosing”) and “maintenance”: This is the sort of dose you might encounter with multiple stings. It starts at very low doses and rises over an agreed period of time to reach a safe level of venom – usually 100 micrograms. The treatment consists of a course of injections of insect venom. Immunotherapy is available at a number of specialist centres in the UK, but your need for this treatment must be assessed at an allergy clinic. Tests and treatments are available at the Allergology department of the RdGG (Dr de Groot) at the Diakonessehuis location in Voorburg.Your GP or allergy specialist may decide you are a suitable candidate for immunotherapy (also known as desensitisation). This can be carried with you and is used to inject epinephrine into the thigh in the case of a sting. If you do not wish to undergo hyposensitization treatment, you can obtain a prescription for an adrenaline auto-injector (such as an EpiPen or Jext) from your doctor. This treatment is intended to desensitize the body to bumblebee venom. Immunotherapy with honeybee venom does not necessarily protect patients with bumblebee allergy. It is also possible to use the purified venom for a hyposensitization treatment. These days it is possible to take a test using purified bumblebee venom to determine whether you will have an allergic reaction the next time you are stung. Reactions to bumblebee stings may differ in each case. If you had a level 1 or 2 reaction in particular, the chance is small. If you have had an allergic reaction once, you will not necessarily have an allergic reaction to the next sting. Level 4 - level 1 and/or 2 and/or 3 symptoms plus heart palpitations, fainting, anaphylactic shock (accompanied by dizziness, excessive sweating, and cold shivers) Level 3 - level 1 and/or 2 symptoms plus difficulties in breathing and/or a feeling of suffocating Level 2 - level 1 symptoms plus intestinal problems (vomiting, diarrhoea) Level 1 - itching, redness and swelling (urticaria, hives) over the whole body Allergic reactions usually become evident very soon after the sting (from a few seconds to half an hour after the sting).Īllergic reactions are classified in four levels, in order of increasing severity: Because an allergic reaction involves antibodies formed during a previous exposure to an antigen, it is not possible to have an allergic reaction after the first sting. In about 1% of the population, repeated stings (or in some cases only two or three stings) may lead to an allergic reaction, also called a general allergic reaction, a systemic allergic reaction, or an anaphylactic reaction. When a honeybee tries to withdraw its stinger, it tears loose from the abdomen, taking the venom gland with it. This means that the worker or queen can withdraw her stinger, and is able to sting again. The stinger of a bumblebee or a wasp has no barbs. The response to a bumblebee sting can differ per incident. ![]() Occasionally (in approximately 1% of cases), an allergic reaction against the injected venom develops. In humans, this generates a short severe pain that then fades away. When a bee stings, some venom is injected into the body through the stinger. Only bumblebee workers and queens have a stinger, as is the case with honeybees and wasps. In general, bumblebees are larger than honeybees, and hairier than wasps. There are various subspecies with differing appearances including different colours and patterns. In addition, bumblebees and honeybees are used as pollinators in agricultural and horticultural crops. Bumblebees are found in the natural environment in many countries. ![]()
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