SCORPION STING SYNDROME IN EASTERN RIYADH

The emergency department log at the King Fahad Hospital was reviewed for the five-year period 1983 through 1987 and 205 cases of ''scorpion sting syndrome'' were found. Specimens brought in by patients were preliminarily identified as Androctonus crassicauda, Apistobuthus pterygocercus, and Leiurus quinquestriatus. Only 13 cases (6%) occurred in the winter months of December, January, and February. Fifty cases (24%) occurred in the daylight hours between 0600 and 1800. There were two hospitalizations and a third patient refused hospitalization. The records of 173 cases were analyzed and all but one had a Saudi surname. One hundred thirty-six patients presented within one hour of the sting. Males were affected twice as often as females, six of whom were pregnant. Twenty-nine (17%) of the patients were children. Pain was the most common symptom but was not always present. Hypertension and redness at the site of the sting were the most common signs. Although frequently benign, cases of scorpion sting as observed in Eastern Riyadh may not be innocuous. Severity is likely to be greater in children and in adults with preexisting hypertension.