Free Essays on 15th And 16th Century Slavery

15th & 16th Century Slavery â€Å"New slavery began with middle eastern and north African Muslims, then carried onto the European Christians, who turned African slavery into an intercontinental business.† (pg 32 Enduring Vision 4th edition)† Slavery already existed in the fifteenth century in west Africa. Kings and emperors owned slaves, and so did many families. Usually the slaves, and their children, were taken in to the owners family as time passed. New slavery developed because the Portuguese needed something cheaper and longer lasting than indentured slaves. Indentured slaves were usually low status people in debt or prisoners of war. They also needed to replace the Indian slaves because they kept dieing from malnutrition and disease. New slavery started when the Portuguese started traveling to Africa. They saw the Africans already using slavery. They decided to catch slaves from some tribes and trade them to others for gold and silver. This became very profiting for them. The Portuguese and Spanish created large slave labor plantations when they immigrated to America. These plantations produced sugar for the European market. The Europeans began shipping Africans over to work on these plantations. New slavery replaced tradition slavery. This is because the black slaves were not looked at like humans. Their black skin and different religion dehumanized them and made them in the Europeans eyes just a form of property. Because they saw them as property they didn’t care how hard they worked them, and only fed them enough to stay alive and working. The slave owners became very rich and slavery spread fast among the nation. There were many differences between traditional slavery and new slavery. Traditional slavery began with people buying small groups of slaves. These slaves resided in their master’s houses. They generally worked in and around their master’s household doing domestic services. New slavery consist... Free Essays on 15th And 16th Century Slavery Free Essays on 15th And 16th Century Slavery 15th & 16th Century Slavery â€Å"New slavery began with middle eastern and north African Muslims, then carried onto the European Christians, who turned African slavery into an intercontinental business.† (pg 32 Enduring Vision 4th edition)† Slavery already existed in the fifteenth century in west Africa. Kings and emperors owned slaves, and so did many families. Usually the slaves, and their children, were taken in to the owners family as time passed. New slavery developed because the Portuguese needed something cheaper and longer lasting than indentured slaves. Indentured slaves were usually low status people in debt or prisoners of war. They also needed to replace the Indian slaves because they kept dieing from malnutrition and disease. New slavery started when the Portuguese started traveling to Africa. They saw the Africans already using slavery. They decided to catch slaves from some tribes and trade them to others for gold and silver. This became very profiting for them. The Portuguese and Spanish created large slave labor plantations when they immigrated to America. These plantations produced sugar for the European market. The Europeans began shipping Africans over to work on these plantations. New slavery replaced tradition slavery. This is because the black slaves were not looked at like humans. Their black skin and different religion dehumanized them and made them in the Europeans eyes just a form of property. Because they saw them as property they didn’t care how hard they worked them, and only fed them enough to stay alive and working. The slave owners became very rich and slavery spread fast among the nation. There were many differences between traditional slavery and new slavery. Traditional slavery began with people buying small groups of slaves. These slaves resided in their master’s houses. They generally worked in and around their master’s household doing domestic services. New slavery consist...

The influence of quantitative easing monetary policy on Japan and the Research Paper

The influence of quantitative easing monetary policy on Japan and the United States - Research Paper Example Expansionary monetary policies aimed at stimulating the economy usually involve central banks buying short-term government bonds so that the market interest rates can be lowered. Nonetheless, when short-term interest rates go towards zero, this approach may no longer be effective. In this kind of situation, the monetary authorities may employ the use of quantitative easing to stimulate the economy through purchase of assets that mature in the long-term rather than short-term government bonds, therefore decreasing the interest rates away from the yield curve. Quantitative easing may be important in assisting to make sure that inflation does not go below the target, but it has risks including over-efficacy than originally intended against deflation, thereby resulting in higher inflation in the longer term from increased supply or sufficiently effective in the event that additional reserves are not lent out by banks. Based on the opinion of various economists as well as the IMF, quantitative easing used since the beginning of the financial crisis that was experienced between 2007 and 2008, has been critical in mitigating various adverse impacts of the crisis (Gindin and Panitch 326). Various economists and analysts argue that the US Federal Reserve employed some type of quantitative easing from 1930 all the way to 1940s in the fight against the Great Depression. Nevertheless, as the Federal Reserve employed quantitative easing initiatives to address the effects of 2007-08 financial crisis, various critics have considered its actions extraordinary. Further, charts have been created to point out that, as a fraction of GDP, the balance sheet after the financial crisis had not gone past the percentages that were attained between 1939 and 48 as of May 2013. The phrase â€Å"quantitative easing† was for the first time employed by the Bank of Japan when it was dealing with domestic

Operating Segments Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Operating Segments - Essay Example IFRS 8 normally applies to the individual and separate financial statements of a business organization, or consolidated financial statements of a group of business organizations managed by a company. Through this statement, we can denote that there is a need of carrying out financial reporting through operational segment reporting (Bragg, 2010). Segment reporting involves giving of separate accounts of the individual divisions or units of a company, its subsidiaries and other divisions. In an annual accounting report, the purpose of a financial segment reporting is to give an accurate picture of the performance of a public company to its shareholders and investors (Crawford and Helliar, 2010). Future or prospective investors will also use this financial statement for purposes of making a decision on whether to invest or not in a business organization. For the management of an organization, segment reporting is used for purposes of evaluating the assets, liabilities, expenses and inco me of each segment. This is for purposes of assessing how risky or profitable the business segment under consideration is. It is through this assessment that the managers of a business organization will develop policies aimed at meeting the objectives and aims of the business organization (Bragg, 2010). When it comes to the evaluation of large capitalized companies, carrying out an analysis of important financial information is the beginning point. On a general perspective, it is always difficult to understand the financial records and information of large capitalized business organizations (Bragg, 2010). To understand their operations and financial records, there is a need of analyzing every operation of the business organizations. This is individually. The segment data of a company is therefore an important place to begin an analysis of the

Essentials of Health Information Management Essay Example for Free

Essentials of Health Information Management Essay Source- oriented medical records are kept together by subject matters, such as data from all laboratory results. Progress notes are all kept together and are written in paragraph format; these entries are filed under a specific sectionalized area in the patient chart and are usually in chronological order. Many facilities use the chronological order because this is an easy way to locate the required documents. The major advantage is that information is organized together, which makes it easier to determine the assessment, treatment, and observations a particular department provided a patient. The major disadvantage is there is no possible way to quickly determine all of the patient problems or treatment that has been provided to the patient. Problem- oriented medical records are kept together by a problem number; with this a number is placed to each problem. This is the most traditional way that most physicians document his or her records. Progress notes are kept in a â€Å"SOAP format, which is S= subjective, O=objective, A= assessment, and P= plan of action.† (SOAP Notes, 2010) The problem oriented-medical records have four parts, which include a database, problem list, initial plan, and progress notes. The major advantage is the record format is the ease or progression through all the data. The data is organized into stratified sections, which is quicker to find information needed and allows for a more rapid review of multiple office vists over time. The major disadvantage is that this type of format requires additional training and commitment from the medical and professional staff. An integrated record is a combination of source- oriented and problem- oriented medical records. The records are arranged in a strict chronological order, regardless of the source of original information. This method keeps a good account of continual events as the events occur and this method makes it difficult to compare and coordinate the issues easily. References Farlex. (2011). The Free Dictionary. Retrieved from http://www.medical-dictonary.thefreedictionary.com SOAP Notes. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.maexample.com/soap-notes.htm

What Makes Women Crazy in Ancient Literature? Essay -- Literature

What does crazy mean? There are a few words that must be defined in order to support my argument. Crazy is an adjective that tends to mean passionately excited or enthusiastic. However it also can mean, â€Å"mentally deranged; demented and insane.† (Dictionary.com), which is important for the purposes of my argument because Medea is said to be crazy, but not overly excited about her situation. The next important word is mad, another adjective, and also a synonym for crazy. The last word is depressed, meaning â€Å"sad and gloomy; dejected; downcast.† (Dictionary.com). In The Tale of Genji , I believe Murasaki becomes depressed because she loses her â€Å"spirit†. Yet she hides her real emotions. Why are these words pertinent? Well they serve a purpose to distinguish culture differences in the two works: The Tale of Genji and The Medea. The different culture backgrounds in these two pieces of literature are important because it may help readers understand; why the characters â€Å"acted† in that specific manner. Therefore, I contend that the culture differences in Greek and Japanese writers reflect directly on the female characters reaction to the situations they were forced into. To support the argument, there will be background information provided on each author, including culture and personal history. Then I will explain the differences in each culture, specifically focusing in on their marital beliefs. However culture differences may not be the only culprit for the reflection of women in literature. In The Tale of Genji, the character Murasaki was not portrayed as crazy, she was a young noble lady in courtship with Genji: â€Å"Murasaki was no busy being grandmother to the royal children†(Shikibu 1335). In today’s modern society, some Americans ... ...com/docview/222691277?accountid=3611 "Murasaki Shikibu C.978-after 1005." Encyclopedia of Life Writing: Autobiographical and Biographical Forms. London: Routledge, 2001. Credo Reference. 10 Sept. 2007. Web. 24 Apr. 2012. . Reid, Matthew C., and Grant Gillett . "The Case of Medea: A View of Fetal-Maternal Conflict Journal of Medical Ethics." BMJ Publishing Group. 23.1 (1997): 19-25. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. . Vickers, Brian. "Myths in Tragedy." Towards Greek Tragedy: Drama, Myth, Society. Longman Group Limited, 1973. 268-343. Rpt. in World Literature Criticism, Supplement 1-2: A Selection of Major Authors from Gale's Literary Criticism Series. Ed. Polly Vedder. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 1997. Literature Resource Center. Web. 26 Mar. 2012.

Hypokalemia After Acute Acetaminophen Overdose Health And Social Care Essay

Aims: This survey intended to find the prevalence of hypokalemia and its clinical correlatives in acute psychiatric unwellness among hypokalemic and normokalemic patients after acetaminophen overdose. Methods: This is a retrospective cohort survey of infirmary admittances for ague Datril overdose conducted over a period of 5 old ages from January 1, 2004 to December 31, 2008. Demographic informations and different types of psychiatric unwellness were compared between hypokalemic and normokalemic patients. Hypokalemia was predefined by a serum concentration & A ; lt ; 3.5 mmol/ L. SPSS 15 was used for informations analysis. Consequences: Two hundred and eighty patients out of 305 admittances were studied. Hypokalemia was found in 63.6 % of patients with a higher prevalence in the presence of psychiatric unwellness ( 67.7 % ) . Hypokalemic patients were significantly associated with the presence of major depression ( P = 0.04 ) , adjustment upset ( P & A ; lt ; 0.001 ) , anxiousness ( P = 0.01 ) , and self-destructive efforts ( P = 0.04 ) . Decision: Hypokalemia was common among patients with psychiatric unwellness and ague Datril overdose. Cardinal Wordss: Acetaminophen ; Hypokalemia ; Overdose ; Potassium ; Psychiatric unwellness.IntroductionDeliberate self-poisoning ( DSP ) is recognized as a major cause of self-destruction around the world.1 Acetaminophen ( Paracetamol ) is the most common drug employed in DSP in many states, 2, 3 including Malaysia.4 Despite first-class safety in curative doses of Datril ; it is besides one of the prima causes of terrible hepatic necrosis.5 Acetaminophen overdose may be accompanied by electrolyte perturbations including hypokalemia, and these appear to be independent of the hepatotoxic effects.6 These electrolyte alterations appear to be due to the addition in fractional nephritic elimination of K, but the implicit in cellular mechanisms by which Datril might change electrolyte conveyance are still unknown.6-9 In some instances, hypokalemia may be terrible, making a degree of 2.3 mmol/ L after reported consumption of 48 g of acetaminophen.8 Hypokalemia, an easy identifiable and clinically of import status in clinical scenes, has received small attending from research workers worldwide. Not merely is hypokalemia associated with frequent cardiac and neuromuscular complications, but its consequence on mental map may besides worsen psychiatric disturbances.10, 11 Both anxiety12 and intense exercise13 addition go arounding adrenaline, which induces a ?2 – receptor-mediated inflow of K into skeletal muscle.14 As this status may be similar to the acute psychotic province, it was hypothesized that the diminution in serum K concentration could be associated with the presence of psychiatric unwellness during Datril overdose. To better our cognition of hypokalemia after acute Datril overdose, we carried out a five-year, hospital-based survey with the following aims: 1 ) to find the prevalence of hypokalemia in patients showing to infirmary after Datril overdose, and 2 ) to look into the clinical correlatives in acute psychiatric unwellness among hypokalemic and normokalemic patients after acetaminophen overdose.MethodsSettings and Study DesignThis is an experimental retrospective instance reappraisal of all patients with acute Datril overdose admitted to a 1200-bed infirmary located in the Northern part of Malaysia. The infirmary provides wellness attention and exigency intervention for all unwellnesss and accidents. All facets of the survey protocol, including entree to and usage of the patients ‘ clinical information, were authorized by the local wellness governments before induction of this survey.Participants and Data CollectionDatas were collected from January 1, 2004 to December 31, 2008. A co mputing machine generated list was obtained from the Hospital Record Office. We identified our instances harmonizing to the T-codes of the International Classification of Diseases-Tenth alteration ( ICD-10 ) . All patients with diagnostic codifications T 39.1 ( acetaminophen overdose ) were included in the survey. Specially designed data-collection signifiers were used to roll up informations refering age, gender, fortunes of overdose ( inadvertent or suicidal ) , stated day of the month and clip of poisoning to cipher the latency clip ( the clip of consumption to the clip the patient was presented at the infirmary ) , measure of Datril ingested, GI decontamination such as tummy wash, research lab trials including serum Datril concentration, and serum K concentrations during the first twenty-four hours of admittance and after a lower limit of 4 hours of consumption. Data on serum Datril concentration measurings were obtained from the infirmary ‘s curative drug supervising laboratory service. In add-on, informations related to the presence of psychiatric unwellness were obtained. psychiatric unwellness was defined as the presence of any perturbation of emotional equilibrium, as manifested in maladaptive behaviour and impaired operation, caused by familial, physical, chemical, biological, psychological, or societal and cultural factors such as depression, anxiousness, accommodation upsets, unprompted behaviours and emphasis reactions, either emotional or behavioural ; these causes were noted by the infirmary psychiatric specialist study..Hypokalemia was defined as a serum K degree of less than 3.5 mmol/ L.11 Patients with hypokalemia were classified into three groups based on K degrees: ( 1 ) mild/ grade 1 ( 3.0 – 3.4 mmol/ L ) , ( 2 ) moderate/grade 2 ( 2.5 – 2.9 mmol/ L ) and, ( 3 ) severe/grade 3 ( & A ; lt ; 2.5 mmol/ L ) .15 The charts of all patients identified through the hunt were reviewed and the information collected. Charts were excluded from analysis for the undermentioned grounds: ( 1 ) baseline K concentrations were non measured, ( 2 ) if patients had taken acetaminophen but the cause of consumption was unknown or undetermined, ( 3 ) the clip of consumption was non known or ( 4 ) the patients were on regular prescribed drugs that lead to hypokalemia, such as Lasix, and ( 5 ) the patients were kids under 13 old ages of age. Charts of patients who had research lab trials at or more than 4 hours post-ingestion were extracted for farther analysis.Statistical analysisDatas were entered and analyzed utilizing the Statistical Package for Social Sciences plan version 15 ( SPSS ) . Data were expressed as average  ± SD for uninterrupted variables and as frequence for categorical variables. The Chi square or Fischer ‘s exact trial, as appropriate, was used to prove the significance between categori cal variables. The independent samples t-test was used to compare agencies of uninterrupted variables. Variables were tested for normalcy utilizing the Kolmogorov-Smirnov trial. Variables that were non usually distributed were expressed as a median ( lower – upper quartiles ) . Statistical significance was considered at P & A ; lt ; 0.05.ConsequencesThree hundred and five instances of Datril overdose were identified. Of these, 25 patients ( 8.2 % ) were excluded. Baseline K concentrations were non measured in eight patients, one patient was given furosemide at admittance, five patients were less than 13 old ages old, the cause of consumption was unknown or undetermined in 11 patients, and hence, the survey population consisted of 280 patients ( 45 male and 235 female patients with a average age of 23.4  ± 7.1, giving a female: male ratio of 5.22: 1 ) . The bulk ( 72.1 % ) of instances of acetaminophen consumption were presented within eight hours. The average ( interquartile scope ) measure of Datril ingested was 10 g ( 6 – 15 g ) . Initial direction included tummy wash, which was performed in 181 ( 64.6 % ) instances. Activated wood coal was given while patients were in the Accident and Emergency section ; it was given as individual or multiple doses in 173 instances ( 61.8 % ) . Intravenous N-acetylcysteine ( NAC ) was given to 140 patients ( 50 % ) after Datril degrees were estimated. The average ( interquartile scope ) serum acetaminophen concentration was 55.6 mg/ L ( 14 – 120 mg/ L ) . During the survey period, 63.6 % ( 178 patients ; 33 males and 145 females ) had K degrees of less than 3.5 mmol/ L. For the hypokalemic patients, the average K degree was 3.1  ± 0.26 mmol/ L, while that for the normokalemic patients was 3.76  ± 0.35 mmol/ L. Most of the patients ( 129 ) were in mild phase hypokalemia and 45 patients were in moderate phase hypokalemia. Few patients ( 4 ) were in terrible phase hypokalemia. Psychiatrically sick topics were found to hold hypokalemia, and the prevalence was higher than that in non-psychiatrically sick topics ( 67.7 % versus 43.8 % ; severally, P = 0.002 ) ( Figure 1 ) . The most common clinical diagnosing among medically treated self-destruction triers was adjustment upset ( 45.7 % ) followed by unprompted behaviour ( 24.3 % ) , major depression ( 10.7 % ) , and anxiousness ( 2.1 % ) . Hypokalemia was significantly associated with the presence of major depression ( P = 0.04 ) , adjustment upset ( P & A ; lt ; 0.001 ) , anxiousness ( P = 0.01 ) , and self-destructive efforts ( P = 0.04 ) . However, normokalemia was significantly associated with unprompted behaviour ( P & A ; lt ; 0.001 ) , the absence of psychiatric unwellness ( P = 0.002 ) , and the presence of inadvertent overdose ( P = 0.04 ) ( Table 1 ) . One hundred and twelve patients with adjustment upset and six patients with anxiousness were found to hold hypokalemia, and the prevalence of hypokalemia among these patients was higher than that in the overall survey population and in patients with other psychiatric upsets ( 100 % and 87.5 % , severally ) . Similarly, their average K degree was lower than that of the overall survey population ( 3.16  ± 0.41 and 3.2  ± 0.21 mmol/ L, severally ) ( Table 2 ) . Eight hypokalemic patients ( 4.5 % ) were supplemented with unwritten K medicine, and 85 hypokalemic patients ( 47.8 % ) were treated with endovenous K chloride, and their K degrees were normalized in the following blood trial. Additionally, most of the treated patients ( 59 ) were in mild phase hypokalemia and 32 patients were in moderate phase hypokalemia. Few patients ( 2 ) were in terrible phase hypokalemia.DiscussionThis survey is the first of its sort in Malaysia and has been carried out to find the prevalence of hypokalemia in patients showing to infirmary after acute Datril overdose, and to look into the clinical correlatives in acute psychiatric unwellness among hypokalemic and normokalemic patients after acetaminophen overdose in 280 patients with acute Datril overdose collected retrospectively from a records register. In this survey hypokalemia was identified in 178 patients, and the prevalence of hypokalemia among hospitalized patients with acetaminophen overdose was 63.6 % . A old survey found that hypokalemia was common in medical inmate settings.16 About 20 % of shot, 10 % of myocardial infarction patients,17 21.2 % of psychiatric disorders,18 and about one tierce of ague Datril overdose patients suffered from hypokalemia.9 The high prevalence of hypokalemia after Datril overdose might be due to multiple hazard factors. The etiology of hypokalemia is complex. The degree of serum K depends on the balance between unwritten consumption, nephritic and GI losingss every bit good as the balance and motion between excess and intra-cellular compartments.11 A old survey found that 7.6 % of psychiatric patients had nutritionary jobs ; 19 unequal dietetic K consumption was comparatively rare unless day-to-day K consumption was less than 25 mmol.20 This survey found that it was the psychiatrically sick patients, instead than those patients with no psychiatric unwellness, who were more likely to develop hypokalemia. This determination is consistent with other published surveies that showed that hypokalemia was common among acute psychiatric inpatients.18, 21, 22 Adjustment upsets are frequently precipitated by emphasis reactions.23 For most people, emphasis is associated with higher hydrocortisone levels.24, 25 Previous surveies have suggested that high hydrocortisone degrees may be the chief cause of hypokalemia.26-28 In this survey, patients with anxiousness were enduring from a low mean K concentration and a high prevalence of hypokalemia. The exact mechanism was unsure. This determination is in understanding with another published survey that has shown little lessenings in serum K among 200 pre-operative patients who had an addition in anxiety.12 The account of this determination is that anxiousness increases the circulating adrenaline, 12 which induces a ?2 – receptor-mediated inflow of K into skeletal muscle.14 In the present survey, patients with major depression were enduring from a high prevalence of hypokalemia. This determination is similar to a old work that has shown patients with major depression had lower average serum K values and a higher incidence of hypokalemia than other upsets such as dysthymic upset and schizophrenic psychosis.18 This determination may be due to alterations in sympathomimetic thrust or in sensitiveness or denseness of the ?2-receptor. 18 Expected findings in our survey were the low incidence of hypokalemia in the patients with unprompted behaviour. These patients differed significantly from the other types of psychiatric unwellness and considered as a portion of the normal behavior.29 This is supported by findings that impulsivity is a type of human behaviour characterized by the disposition of an person to move on impulse instead than thought.30 It has been concluded in old survey that the reduced peripheral adrenaline degrees may be involved in pathophysiology of unprompted and overactive behaviors.31 This mechanism consequences in a reduced consumption of K by cells. In add-on, this survey found that it was the self-destructive patients, instead than those with inadvertent overdose, who were more likely to develop hypokalemia. Attempted self-destruction is assumed to be a hyper-adrenergic state.18 A retrospective survey carried out on patients with psychiatric upsets concluded that important differences existed among the attempted self-destruction group with respect to hypokalemia.18 ?-adrenergic receptor stimulation causes hypokalemia in experimental animate beings and humans.32 There is small uncertainty that one of the mechanisms of hypokalemia is a beta 2-receptor-mediated inflow of K into skeletal musculus, induced by go arounding epinephrine.18, 33, 34 It has been demonstrated that adrenaline causes inordinate activation of the sodium/potassium-ATPase pump as a consequence of ?2-adrenergic receptor stimulation.14, 33 This mechanism consequences in an increased consumption of K by cells, taking to a lessening in serum K degrees. As the influ ence of the sympathomimetic system on serum K is found in many psychiatric state of affairss, 18, 21, 22, 35 it may explicate why a high prevalence of the patients included in our survey were presented with hypokalemia. A high per centum of patients ( 47.7 % ) were still non being treated for low K degrees, seting their wellness in hazard. The common happening of hypokalemia in patients with acute Datrils overdose should alarm all clinicians to the importance of rectifying K loss, since most of the patients with an Datril overdose might hold received endovenous fluids or N-acetylcysteine in serum dextrose 5 % . However, this may hold altered serum K concentrations through endogenous insulin production induced by 5 % dextroglucose, ensuing in motion of K into the intracellular compartment. However, the extended usage of dextroglucose may expose the patients to higher hazards. This survey is the first one of its type in Malaysia to look into the clinical correlatives in acute psychiatric unwellness among hypokalemic and normokalemic patients after acetaminophen overdose. It is besides the first survey suggested that hypokalemia is related to psychiatric position after Datril overdose instead than the old studious that showed a dose-dependent relationship between autumn in serum K and serum Datril at presentation.6, 9 Our survey suffers from a few restrictions. First, farther hazard factors for hypokalemia were non taken into history in the analysis. A 2nd restriction is its retrospective nature and the deficiency of structured interview appraisal of the topics. Third, we can merely propose, instead than turn out, that the psychiatric province is responsible for the high happening of hypokalemia diagnosed in our population.Decisions and recommendationsIn decision, hypokalemia is extremely prevailing among psychiatrically sick patients and after acute Datril overdose. Therefore, monitoring of serum K concentration may be clinically of import on exigency admittance for all instances of ague Datril overdoses to forestall the effects of hypokalemia. Supplemental potassium disposal should be commenced every bit shortly as possible. Recognitions: The writers would wish to thank the Universiti Sains Malaysia ( USM ) for the fiscal support provided for their research. The aid of the medical and record office staff is appreciatively acknowledged. Conflict of involvements: We would wish to declare that there was no struggle of involvements in carry oning this research.

Do Spiders Bite Humans Why Spider Bites Are Rare

Spider bites are actually rare. Spiders really  dont  bite humans very often.  Most people are quick to blame a spider for any unusual bump or mark on their skin, but in the vast majority of cases, the cause of your skin irritation is not a spider bite. This belief is so pervasive that doctors often misdiagnose (and mistreat) skin disorders as spider bites. Spiders Aren't Built to Bite Large Mammals First of all, spiders are not built to do battle with large mammals like humans. Spiders are designed to capture and kill other invertebrates. With few exceptions (most notably, that of widow spiders), spider venom is not lethal enough to do much damage to human tissues. Chris Buddle, an Associate Professor of Insect Ecology at McGill University, notes that of the almost 40,000 spider species, globally, there are less than a dozen or so that can cause serious health problems to the average, healthy human. And even those with venom potent enough to threaten harm to a human are ill equipped to bite us. Spider fangs simply arent made for puncturing human skin. Thats not to say spiders cant bite humans, but its not an easy thing for them to do. Ask any arachnologist how often they suffer bites while handling live spiders. Theyll tell you that they dont get bitten, period. Spiders Choose Flight Over Fight One of the main ways that spiders detect threats is by sensing vibrations in their environment, much like they detect the presence of wayward insects in their webs. People make a lot of noise, and spiders are well aware that we are coming their way. And if a spider knows you are coming, its going to choose flight over fight whenever possible. When Spiders Do Bite Now, occasionally, spiders do bite people. When does this happen? Usually, when someone unknowingly sticks his hand into a spiders habitat, and the spider is forced to defend itself. And heres a disturbing little tidbit of spider bite trivia for you, courtesy of entomologist Dr. Gilbert Waldbauer in The Handy Bug Answer Book: The majority of [black widow spider] bites are inflicted on men or boys sitting in an outdoor privy, or pit toilet. Black widows sometimes spin their web just beneath the hole in the seat, often a good place to catch flies. If the unfortunate persons penis dangles in the web, the female spider rushes to attack; presumably in defense of her egg sacs, which are attached to the web. So If This Mark on My Skin Isn't a Spider Bite, What Is It? What you thought was a spider bite could be any number of things. There are plenty of arthropods that do bite humans: fleas, ticks, mites, bedbugs, mosquitoes, biting midges, and many more. Skin disorders can also be caused by exposure to things in your environment, including chemicals and plants (like poison ivy). There are dozens of medical conditions that can cause a skin irritation that looks like a bite, from vascular disorders to diseases of the lymphatic system. Bacterial or viral infections are often misdiagnosed as arthropod bites. And you might be surprised to learn that one of the most common causes of  spider bites is actually MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus). Sources: Spider Myths: I woke up with spider bites†¦, Burke Museum. Accessed online July 24, 2014.Spiders do not bite, Arthropod Ecology blog, Chris Buddle. Accessed online July 24, 2014.The Surprising Cause of Most Spider Bites, Live Science, Douglas Main. Accessed online July 24, 2014.It’s Not a Spider Bite, It’s Community-Acquired Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine, Tamara J. Dominguez, MD. Accessed online July 24, 2014.Thats No Spider Bite: Antibiotic Resistant Staph Infections Now Very Common, ABC News, Joy Victory. Accessed online July 24, 2014.Causes of Necrotic Wounds other than Brown Recluse Spider Bites, University of California – Riverside, Rick Vetter, M.S. Accessed online July 24, 2014.The Handy Bug Answer Book, by Dr. Gildbert Waldbauer.