THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
EVANSVILLE — A coroner says a 42-year-old Evansville man may have died from a bite from a brown recluse spider.
Vanderburgh County Coroner Annie Groves told the Evansville Courier & Press that Keith E. Reed was found dead at his home Monday with a bite on his leg consistent with that of a brown recluse. The spider bite was listed as a preliminary cause of death pending tests.
Groves says Reed had told his wife something had bitten him while he was camping recently, but Reed didn’t seek medical attention until a couple of days before he died.
The brown recluse, which is less than an inch long, is the most venomous spider in the Midwest. Its bite is painless and the symptoms usually show up hours later. A bite can cause lesions and symptoms such as nausea and vomiting, and in rare instances, can be fatal.
