The same bee and other insect venom shots that doctors use to prevent deadly systemic reactions to insect stings can also tone down large local allergic reactions that, while not dangerous, can be painful and inconvenient, a Johns Hopkins study shows. Results of the study are published in the June 2009 Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
Venom therapy, in which small periodic injections of venom from bees, wasps and other stinging insects build up immunity among those susceptible to potentially lethal anaphylactic shock from stings, has had widespread use since it was developed in the 1970s at Johns Hopkins. However, people who suffer frequent large localized reactions because of jobs or hobbies such as landscaping, gardening and golfing, are generally denied this treatment. Though these localized reactions aren't life-threatening, they can be extremely painful and cause massive swelling that lasts for days.
"We just didn't know if venom therapy would work or cause problems for these patients," says David Golden, M.D., an associate professor of medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
To find out, he and his colleagues recruited 41 volunteers with a history of large local reactions to insect stings. Many of the volunteers were subject to unavoidable frequent stings owing to outdoor jobs or hobbies. From that group, Golden selected those whose reactions were marked by extremely large swellings of at least 16 cm - about the size of a football - and winnowed out those who couldn't commit to evaluations that involved live insect stings or the rigorous study schedule.