From Stephen Black, Bishop's University
Veterinarian Andy Sokol obviously hadn’t been keeping up with the literature
when he recommended that a man afflicted with a tarantula-in-the-ear problem
stick his head in the freezer
(Feedback, 24 June).
K. O’Toole and colleagues reported a successful treatment 15 years earlier in a case
involving two cockroaches, one in each ear, in The New England Journal of
Medicine.
Using an admirably scientific approach, they tried mineral oil in one ear, 2
per cent lignocaine in the other. The lignocaine method proved superior, as “the
roach exited the canal at a convulsive rate of speed”, where it was terminated
using “the simple crush technique”.
I recommend that Sokol try this method the next time the tarantula problem
arises, although he may wish to omit the crush procedure if the tarantula is a
pet.
Lennoxville, Canada
