eMedicine Specialties > Emergency Medicine > Environmental

Caterpillar Envenomation

Author: Robert L Norris, MD, Associate Professor, Department of Surgery; Chief, Division of Emergency Medicine, Stanford University Medical Center
Contributor Information and Disclosures

Updated: Nov 19, 2008

Introduction

Background

More than 165,000 species of caterpillars in the order Lepidoptera (phylum Arthropoda, class Insecta) exist. About 150 are of medical importance. This importance lies in the ability of many species to induce an irritant or toxic dermatitis in humans and in the ability of some species to sting. Caterpillars are the larval forms of moths and butterflies. After hatching from their eggs, caterpillars pass through 4-5 instars (stages between molts) before they pupate in a cocoon. The adult moth or butterfly emerges from the cocoon to reproduce the next generation. More than 50 species in the United States alone are capable of inflicting a painful sting. Seasonal epidemics of dermatitis can occur when caterpillars are numerous.

The most dangerous caterpillar in the United States is the puss caterpillar or asp (Megalopyge opercularis; see Media file 1), the larval form of the flannel moth. It is found throughout the Southeast, from Maryland to Mexico. Stings from this species are common from June through September.

Pathophysiology

Human disease from caterpillars or moths usually arises from direct contact, exposure to substances or animals that have been infested with caterpillars or their webs, or contact with airborne caterpillar debris.

Diaz classifies the diseases caused by caterpillars into 5 groups: erucism, lepidopterism, dendrolimiasis, ophthalmia nodosa, and consumptive coagulopathy with secondary fibrinolysis.

Erucism (caterpillar dermatitis) is characterized by a localized, pruritic, maculopapular contact dermatitis and urticaria, and follows contact with toxic hairs, spines, or hemolymph, either directly or following aerosolization.

Lepidopterism is a systemic illness that occurs following such contact, and it is typified by diffuse urticaria, upper airway inflammation, nausea, vomiting, headache, and bronchospasm.

Dendrolimiasis is a more chronic illness that follows contact with the Asian Dendorlimus pini caterpillar. Patients with this disorder demonstrate a pruritic maculopapular rash and migratory polyarthritis/polychondritis, which can progress to chronic osteoarthritis. Occasionally, acute scleritis occurs as well.

Ophthalmia nodosa presents with acute conjunctivitis, progressing to panophthalmitis, following penetration of the cornea by urticating hairs.

Consumptive coagulopathy with secondary fibrinolysis occurs most commonly following stings by the South American Lonomia caterpillar whose venom activates factor X and prothrombin. Patients can demonstrate bleeding from almost any anatomic site and may develop acute renal failure.

Caterpillar venoms are produced by glandular cells in the epithelium and are stored in and injected by urticating hairs and spines (setae). Some species produce toxic hemolymph, which can cause human disease.

In some patients, immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies are produced following contact, resulting in a hypersensitive state and the production of generalized urticaria on subsequent re-contact. A few caterpillars lacking urticating hairs are capable of inducing a contact dermatitis (type IV hypersensitivity).

Some caterpillars and moths release their toxic hairs into the environment, where the hairs can be inhaled. Pets or contaminated objects also can carry venomous hairs. In any of these situations, contact with the hairs can cause rhinitis or respiratory disease. Seasonal epidemics of respiratory disease have occurred in Latin America because of this phenomenon. The pathologic response leading to erucism or lepidopterism consists of acute inflammation and cellular infiltration around hairs that have penetrated the skin or conjunctiva or have been inhaled into the respiratory tract.

In the skin, diffuse vascular dilatation occurs, with subsequent edema formation in the superficial dermis and ballooning of keratinocytes within the epidermis that can lead to vesiculation. In the eye, hairs have a remarkable penetrating capacity and may work their way into the cornea, anterior chamber, or lens, where an intense inflammatory response occurs secondary to the nature of the foreign material and direct toxic effects.

Caterpillar venom-filled spines, found only in the larval forms (adult moths and butterflies do not sting), are hollow structures with a single basal poison cell that produces toxin. When pressed into the skin, the tip of the spine fractures, and the venom is injected under pressure. Toxicity declines significantly after the creature's death, but irritant or toxic hairs may retain the ability to cause dermatitis for years. Likewise, the toxic hemolymph of some caterpillars retains its potency for prolonged periods after the animal's death.

Caterpillar venoms are poorly studied but may contain peptides, hyaluronidase, phospholipase A, and biogenic amines such as histamine or histamine-releasing substances. Some, such as the South American Lonomia species, contain fibrinolytic proteases and coagulation activators that can stimulate a consumptive coagulopathy and renal failure in victims.

Frequency

United States

Although no accurate information is available, epidemics of erucism and lepidopterism have been reported. These include school closings, outbreaks of dermatitis and rhinitis in the thousands, and symptoms in more than 500,000 people caused by airborne caterpillar hair dispersion.

International

No accurate information is available, though it appears that the incidence of human disease is increasing.

Mortality/Morbidity

Occasional case reports of death from erucism exist, but death is very rare following stings by most species. Death may be secondary to a hypersensitivity reaction or bleeding diathesis in cases involving caterpillars of the Saturniidae family. In this family, South American Lonomia caterpillars have a high fatality rate (approximately 1.7%) due to the toxicity of their venoms and the fact that many exposures lead to multiple stings due to the communal nature of these species. No deaths have been reported following M opercularis stings.

Reported complications include panophthalmitis, consumptive coagulopathy, intracranial hemorrhage, renal failure, and osteochondritis.

Clinical

History

• While the history of exposure related temporally to the onset of signs and symptoms may be clear, the diagnosis can be challenging. Maintain a high index of suspicion when patients present with unexplained acute dermatitis, rhinitis, conjunctivitis, or wheezing during months when caterpillars are numerous. In some regions of the world, the diagnosis becomes clear when clusters of seemingly unrelated cases start to present.
• Onset of acute dermatitis due to hair exposure may immediately follow exposure or may be delayed 8-12 hours and can be manifested by the following:
  • Intense pruritus, local pain or soreness (less common), and erythematous raised rash, blisters, and bruising at the site may occur. Skin necrosis has occurred following prolonged exposure to toxic hairs. With most toxic caterpillars, systemic symptoms are unusual in the absence of respiratory exposure.
  • Respiratory exposure may precipitate acute rhinitis, tearing, cough, dyspnea, respiratory distress, wheezing, and chest pain. This syndrome may need to be differentiated from the rare case of anaphylaxis.
  • Ocular exposure may initiate an acute conjunctivitis with severe pain, tearing, and redness. Visual acuity can be reduced as inflammation progresses.
  • Stings by venomous caterpillars result in immediate, localized, severe, burning pain, which can radiate proximally and be severe enough to inhibit movement of the extremity (pseudoparalysis). Redness and swelling with slight bruising may occur at the site. Over the first few days, the patient may note the development of small blisters, which can become hemorrhagic. Local findings, including pain, may persist for several days.
  • Systemic complaints may occur within minutes of the sting, although they usually occur within 2 hours. These complaints include headache, dizziness, restlessness, nausea and vomiting, malaise, swollen or tender lymph nodes, muscle spasms, rapid heart rate, and, in exceptional cases, altered mental status. Systemic symptoms usually resolve in 24 hours.
  • Following stings by some of the New World caterpillars in the family Saturniidae, which contain a fibrinolytic component to their venoms, patients may note scattered bruising (onset in 8-72 h) and bleeding from any of a number of sites (eg, gingival bleeding, hematuria). Intracranial bleeding and acute renal failure are possible complications. Coagulopathy can last 2-5 weeks.

Physical

• Local findings include erythematous papules that tend to congregate around the face, neck, trunk, arms, wrists, and hands and may become confluent; vesicles; local purpura; or ecchymosis.
• Systemic signs include a low-grade fever.
• Findings of respiratory exposure include acute rhinitis, tearing, respiratory distress, and wheezing.
• Ocular exposure presents as follows:
  • Findings include acute conjunctivitis.
  • Following penetration of the cornea, findings include keratitis, acute uveitis, and retinochoroiditis.
• Stings present as follows:
  • Local findings include erythema, edema, small petechiae or hemorrhagic papules, vesicles, bullae, and pseudoparalysis of the extremity because of pain. Following M opercularis stings, the site may take on a gridlike pattern matching the distribution of the creature's spines.
  • Systemic findings include restlessness, lymphangitis, lymphadenopathy, muscle spasms, tachycardia, altered mental status (unusual), seizures, and hypotension.

• Search for CME/CE on This Topic »