The deaths occurred in July. One elderly man is now at risk of losing a leg.
Two people died and one is seriously injured after being bitten by violin spiders this summer in Italy.
The first case occurred at the beginning of July in Sicily. According to local media, the victim was a 52-year-old policeman called Franco Aielo.
The second was a 23-year-old man, identified as Giuseppe Russo, who died three weeks after being bitten by a violin spider in Lecce.
At first, the young man thought it was a mosquito bite. After weeks without proper treatment and several visits to hospital, the swelling turned into an abscess, which led to necrosis of the leg, septicaemia and multiple organ failure.
Last Thursday, 22 August, the Italian edition of Today reported that there had been another serious case following the bite of yet another violin spider, this time in Modena.
A 70-year-old man was at risk of losing a leg after being bitten by this species of arachnid. Like the previous case, the elderly man thought he had been bitten by another, less dangerous insect and, when he sought help, he was only prescribed a generic antibiotic.
After a few days of no improvement and with his limb already black, he went to hospital again, where he was admitted and given new antibiotics.
After a few days in hospital, during which he came close to having his limb amputated, the man was discharged.
Known for its venom, the violin spider can cause serious skin lesions such as necrosis.
The bite can be painless, however, hours later, it begins to develop into ulcers and extensive tissue damage.
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