datlas 

As some may know, I had a bee/wasp incident last month. Just stings/bites x 4 and some localized symptoms.

Today, as I was finishing up a club ride, I felt something funny then severe pain on my neck a few inches below my ear, under my helmet strap.

I figured it was a bee/wasp but did not see the perp. I finished the ride, looked in the mirror, and saw 2 sting/bite marks.

No biggie...or so I thought...

On my drive home (15mins) I noticed my lips started to swell, and my whole body felt like it got a terrible sunburn (burning itch). I was not short of breath, but by the time I got home I felt TERRIBLE. I ran in to take some benadryl and almost fainted, I had to sit down as I felt lightheaded.

I had my wife take me to the ER and they gave me a nice shot of epinephrine. It worked very well. I had to stay for a few hours of monitoring but am now home.

So now I will have to add an epipen to my usual items to take with me on a ride.

I wonder if they come in carbon fiber...

Anyone have any tips on how to PREVENT bee/wasp incidents??

SCochiller

Keep it dialed up over 1 kW so when you hit them you kill them.

Mike F

Glad your OK. Thats one of my biggest fears. I havent been stung since a child and I was allergic back then. I keep benadryl in my saddle bag and tackle box. Look forward if there are any preventative responses. I know when I had a yellow kayak, I could be smack in the middle of San Diego Bay and wayward bee's would always find my kayak.

caloso

I am also allergic to bee stings. And I discovered this on a ride, like you. As your doc probably explained, instead of building up a tolerance we build up a hypersensitivity to bee toxin. There's usually a tipping point episode. I had mine when I stepped on a bee in the yard about a month before I had my full-on anaphylaxis. As a kid I'd been stung many many times due to playing sports on clover infested fields and mowing lawns.

Anyway, I don't think there's any way to prevent stings on your bike. You just need to be prepared, so I carry an Epi-Pen and benadryl on every ride, and I have "bee sting allergy" on my Road ID. And for what it's worth, I've had to use the Epi-Pen about once a season since first discovering I was allergic.

datlas 

I think I need to invent a spray that repels bees. I will call it "Bee Be Gone." Cute, eh??

I am friends with an allergist will and see if he has any tips.

I know they have a bee venom sensitization protocol but I don't know if it's worthwhile for someone like me who only averages one sting every few years.

alpha_bravo

Personally I think the biggest advantage of Giros air attack helmet will be in reducing bee stings. My three bee and wasp stings were the result of them flying into my helmet and not being able to get out.

datlas 

How is the airflow/cooling??

I figured I could solve this with some netting over my cheap Bell Alchera. I heard some folks even use pantyhose to bee-proof a helmet.

alpha_bravo

Not sure, still haven't found one to try out and that's one of the things that worries me about it. I'd rather have good ventilation and risk bee stings, unless anaphylaxis is an issue.

I think Lazer or Uvex has a removable mesh liner for the inside of their helmets as well to keep the creepy crawlies out.

Mike F

I was looking on their site a few days back and according to Giro website, the Air Attack will be released in Spring 2013

mvnsnd

Glad your're OK and now know that you have an allergy. I got stung twice in a week so far this year, and while the reactions were more than I thought they should be, I don't think I'm allergic. An Epi pen is a must and I don't think there is anything you can do when riding. Sometimes you just run into the little suckers.

SCochiller

Most of my stings come from scooping bees up in my unzipped jersey.

Drakonchik

Ok, so how do you get one of these Epipen devices without getting fleeced by the USA-medical-industrial-complex? I had anaphylaxis once in the 1980s, which could recur any time I get stung, though not again to date despite a sting every couple few years. One of those widgets would be a great EDC on my bike. Problem is, if I talk to my allergy doctor, even for 5 minutes, his office charges me something $150. I have medical insurance but it only covers disasters worth $10,000 or more.

SCochiller

Canadian pharmacy??

Drakonchik

Yah, might as well take care of it next time I'm in the UK or Canada, since it's prescription only in the USA, though the gov't considering making it over-the-counter (OTC). Here's someone else's comment pulled off the web:

"Andrew Jondahl said...
As someone with food allergies, but no health insurance, I welcome the OTC epi pen. My last trip to see an allergist, which consisted of a 20-minute consult and a blood test, cost $750. That's an expensive epi pen."

lungdoc

You need to have immunotherapy ("allergy shots"), venom anaphylaxis is a very strong indication for it and it can be life saving. An Epi-pen injection is not a substitute for preventative therapy, it may not last long enough if you are remote from medical care (effects last <20 minutes) and may not be enough for a severe reaction. You had a potentially life-threatening reaction and it could easily be worse next time. Good info here https://www.uptodate.com/contents/bee...ectedTitle=1~1

datlas 

Yes, thanks. I know a good allergist and will be discussing my options.

BTW the price for an epi pen is pretty high too...and really should be given on the way to the ER.

Drakonchik

I've sometimes carried Benadryl or other oral antihistime with me. The problem is a lot of drugs are neutralized by high heat. I ride at the hottest times of the day throughout the summer, 90 to 106F, a couple hours every day (sometimes 5 to 8 hours when it's garage-sale season). How fast will this heat wipe out whatever drug one is carrying daily, whether epipen, or anti-histimine -- and are there any relevant drugs are that fairly immune to the heat?

proileri

Buy one from someone who has a recipe. Or, you got work-related medical care or something where you could mention it?

I think in general drugs in dry form are pretty heat tolerant, they usually are fairly simple chemicals that don't break down very easily. Moisture (injection products) + heat can make things less survivable, but it's very hard to say what the exact effects are. If you check the product data sheet, it'll tell you something - but of course "storage info" is how you should keep items stored so they last at least until the expiration date. However, you can probably guess that if it says "store in fridge", high heat doesn't probably do any good.

Fortunately, on a bicycle, you can use some sort of a mesh bag that offers both shade and good ventilation, so it doesn't get much warmer than the air temp. I'd estimate products that survive in room temp should survive pretty well, as long as the bag has plenty of air flowing through it and heat cannot build up - you can always put in a small thermometer inside the bag to check how it's doing.

K&K_Dad

The sad thing is, the epi used costs $1.99 and the needle about the same if it were possible to draw your own and administer.

datlas 

Correct. And I will be looking into this possibility. I have people.

pallen

Very good point. It is always recommended that you carry two because they only work for about 20min and its just to keep you alive until help arrives. If you are in a remote area, that could take more than 20min. Don't think you can give yourself a shot and then finish your ride.

FLvector

This has also been my experience. Last week a friend was popped a few times by a wasp when it got trapped in his unzipped jersey. He initially said he was allergic, but didn't respond in any way, such as lips swelling, dizzyness, etc.

I don't know if you respond differently to either a wasp, hornet or bee sting, but the following might help reduce the amount of venom pumped in if you can react quickly enough, on or off the bike. If stung by a bee, they can only sting once. The stinger is usually ripped out of the bee leaving the barbed stinger and a venom sac behind in your skin. The bee then dies and can not sting again. The venom sac continues to pump venom into your body if left.

If you can quickly remove the stinger within a few seconds, you can avoid receiving more venom. Gently scrape the sac and stinger out with a fingernail or a stiff-edged object like a credit card. Do not squeeze the sac or pull on the stinger -- this will cause the release of more venom into the skin. This only applies to bees, since wasps, hornets, yellow jackets can sting several times.

Maybe more than you wanted to know, but since you do sound highly allergic, it could help on or off the bike. Usually if something gets caught in my helmet it eventually finds its way back out. If something flies down the jersey, I try to let it out the bottom before it gets pissed off.

Myosmith

Talk to your doctor. It doesn't have to be an allergy specialist, just general or family practice MD. Epi pens can be lifesavers for people with known histories of severe allergic reactions but there is some education required not just on how, but when to use them. There are also adjuntive drugs that can be used after the epi pen for longer term control, like Benadryl or corticosteroids. Tell your doctor about specific concerns like being alone far from help.

The most important piece of advice is that if you are having a reaction that results in any feeling of swelling or tingling of your face, neck, tongue, lips, or airway, call 911 immediately. The same goes for reactions that result in general swelling or wide spread hives. Anaphylaxis can progress very rapidly and trying to drive yourself home or to the hospital is a mistake even if "It's not that bad" at the time. Call 911 even if you have and use an epi pen, as noted it is a temporary solution that buys you time for the ambulance to arrive, it doesn't cure anything.

Yes, you can be allergic to one and not the others. Even the species of bee can make a difference. This can be misleading as a person can get stung, not have a reaction, and assume they are not allergic to "bee" stings. There are also cases where a person must be exposed (stung) a time or two before developing sensitivity to the venom. If you experience symptoms after being stung by any insect, assume it is an allergic reaction no matter how many times you have been stung before.

lungdoc

1) This isn't advisable for SELF administration (as opposed to keeping around to give to family member for example or as I do storing in glovebox for strangers etc.) as I would have very little confidence in my ability, even as a physician, to carefully break a small ampule, draw it up in a syringe and self administer WHILE experiencing anaphylaxis; never mind if so disabled someone else might need to do it for me. The penalty for failure is severe. Epi Pen vastly easier to do in a crisis.

2) Will repeat the message about the need for allergist assessment and immunotherapy (allergy shots). Not optional, mandatory in my opinion if a history as above of anaphylaxis.

Breathegood

Carry the epi-pen, and use it as soon as you are stung. Take a benadryl as soon can, have someone monitor you for 24 hours, or if you can't, contact your physician and let them know your circumstance. They may tell you that you are fine or they may tell you to go to the ER. In all likelyhood, the next time you get stung and have to use the epi-pen, the spot where you dose yourself will be more painful than the sting and you will experience no ill affects. I've had to dose myself on two occasions with the epi, and that was my experience both times.

There may, however, be other complications. Several years ago, I had a streak of bee stings under the helmet. I believe I had four stings in about six weeks. The first three just presented as a painful welt that went away after a couple days. On the fourth sting, I wasn't able to find the stinger and the welt grew slowly throughout the day. It was slightly swolen and tender at bed time. The next morning, the entire right side of my face was swolen to point that my eye had disappeared and it was difficult to open my mouth. The doc gave me a shot of epi and put me on a dose of prednizone. A few weeks later, I came down with a case of shingles that presented on the side of my head where the bee had stung me. Shingles tends to attack specific nerve centers and some people have linked breakouts to steroids such as prednizone. I believe the combination of bee sting and the dose of prednizone made me susceptible to a shingles outbreak. Shingles is A LOT more painful than a bee sting or epi-pen bruise.

I don't think mine was a common reaction, but my point is that is also important to be aware of where you are stung and make sure you get it cleaned and dressed properly to avoid infection and other complications.