[Diagnostic use of Internet: google the spider].
A 23-year-old woman was working in a factory unpacking jars of Spanish olives when a spider bit her finger. She presented to the emergency outpatient department carrying the spider in a box. She was worried and wanted to know whether the spider, which may have originated from Spain, was poisonous. After a ten minute Internet search the spider was identified as Segestria florentina. It can inject neurotoxins causing temporary local numbness and pain. The patient was reassured and discharged without further treatment. Later, experts confirmed the species. Internet-based search engines can draw attention to unusual diagnoses which otherwise may easily be overlooked. A general search engine can also provide access to subjects that fall outside the scope of the more usual medical sources.
Soonawala
Darius
D
Leids Universitair Medisch Centrum, Leiden, The Netherlands. d.soonawala@lumc.nl
Brienen
Eric A T
EA
Visser
Leo G
LG
D000818:Animals; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016247:Information Storage and Retrieval / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D020407:Internet; D001098:Spider Bites / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis*; D013112:Spiders; D055815:Young Adult