Bee or Yellow Jacket Sting

When To Call

Call 911 Now (your child may need an ambulance) If

• For any of the following symptoms of anaphylaxis, see FIRST AID. Anaphylaxis usually starts within 20 minutes, and always by 2 hours following a sting.
• Wheezing or difficulty breathing
• Hoarseness, cough or tightness in the throat or chest
• Difficulty swallowing or drooling
• Speech is confused or slurred
• Passed out or very weak
• Previous severe allergic reaction to bees, yellow jackets, etc. (not just hives)

Call Your Doctor Now (night or day) If

• Your child looks or acts very sick
• Hives or swelling occur elsewhere on the body
• Sting inside the mouth
• Sting to the eye
• Abdominal pain or vomiting
• More than 5 stings/10 pounds (5 kg) of weight (teens over 50 stings)
• Fever and sting looks infected (spreading redness)
• You think your child needs to be seen urgently

Call Your Doctor Within 24 Hours (between 9 am and 4 pm) If

• You think your child needs to be seen, but not urgently
• Over 48 hours since the sting and redness now becoming larger (Note: infection is uncommon and doesn't start until at least 24-48 hours after the sting. Any redness starting in the first 24 hours is due to venom)
• Swelling is huge (e.g., spreads beyond a joint such as the wrist or ankle)

Call Your Doctor During Weekday Office Hours If

• You have other questions or concerns

Parent Care at Home If

• Normal local reaction to yellow jacket or bee sting and you don't think your child needs to be seen

Disclaimer: This information is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice. It is provided for educational purposes only. You assume full responsibility for how you choose to use this information. For more information, click here.

Care Advice

Home Care Advice for Bee or Yellow Jacket Sting

1. Try to Remove the Stinger (if present):
• Only honey bees leave a stinger.
• Use a fingernail or credit card edge to scrape it off.
• If the stinger is below the skin surface, leave it alone. It will be shed with normal skin healing.
2. Meat Tenderizer:
• Apply a meat tenderizer-water solution on a cotton ball for 20 minutes (EXCEPTION: near the eye). This may neutralize the venom and decrease pain and swelling.
• If not available, apply aluminum-based deodorant or a baking soda solution for 20 minutes.
3. Local Cold: For persistent pain, massage with an ice cube for 10 minutes.
4. Pain Medicine: Give acetaminophen (e.g., Tylenol) or ibuprofen immediately for relief of pain and burning.
5. Antihistamine: If the sting becomes itchy, give a dose of Benadryl. (See Dosage chart)
6. Hydrocortisone Cream: For itching or swelling, apply 1% hydrocortisone cream to the sting area 3 times per day (No prescription needed).
7. Expected Course: Severe pain or burning at the site lasts 1 to 2 hours. Normal swelling from venom can increase for 24 hours following the sting. The redness can last 3 days and the swelling 7 days.
8. Call Your Doctor If:
• Develops difficulty breathing or swallowing (mainly during the 2 hours after the sting) (call 911)
• Redness lasts over 3 days
• Swelling becomes huge or spreads beyond the wrist or ankle
• Sting begins to look infected
• Your child becomes worse

And remember, contact your doctor if your child develops any of the "Call Your Doctor" symptoms. 

To find a pediatrician, click here.

Photos

Bee Sting of Left Hand

Moderate swelling of left hand from a bee sting that occurred the day before.

Source: LMS Inc.
Copyright 2000-2012. Self Care Decisions, LLC. Used by Permission.

Bee Sting of Upper Arm

This photo shows the typical localized reaction to a bee sting.

There is mild redness in an oval 4 inches (10 cm) wide of the left upper arm.

Source: LMS Inc.
Copyright 2000-2012. Self Care Decisions, LLC. Used by Permission.

 

First Aid - Removing a Stinger

The stinger looks like a tiny black dot in the center of the sting. There are several different methods of removal. Removing the stinger quickly is more important than the type of removal used.

• You can scrape it out with a credit card or finger nail.
• You can also use adhesive tape.
• If only a small fragment remains, don't worry about it. It will shed with the skin.

Note: In many cases no stinger will be present. Only bees leave their stingers. Wasps, yellow jackets, and hornets do not.

Source: LMS Inc.
Copyright 2000-2012. Self Care Decisions, LLC. Used by Permission.

First Aid - Shock

• Lie down with the feet elevated (Reason: counteract shock).

Note: In this illustration the individual in shock is laying down and his feet have been placed up on a stack of blankets.

Source: LMS Inc.
Copyright 2000-2012. Self Care Decisions, LLC. Used by Permission.

Honeybee Collecting Pollen

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.

This is a public domain image file from Wikimedia Commons. Wikimedia is a freely licensed media repository.

Hornet

Bald-faced "hornet" (Dolichovespula maculata).

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.

This is a public domain image file from Wikimedia Commons. Wikimedia is a freely licensed media repository.

Paper Wasp

A paper wasp (Polistes dominulus) in its nest.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. Wikimedia Commons.

Photographer: Alvesgaspar.

Wasp

Source: CDC PHIL

From the CDC's Public Health Image Library, ID#5450, in the public domain.

Disclaimer: This information is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice. It is provided for educational purposes only. You assume full responsibility for how you choose to use this information. For more information, click here.