Terry Pareja was hospitalised after being bitten by white-tailed spider. Picture: Gofundme

A MEDICAL expert claimed a man who had his limbs amputated after being bitten by a spider also showed signs of flesh-eating bug the Bairnsdale Ulcer.

Melbourne man Terry Pareja had his legs amputated and may lose his arms after being bitten by a white-tailed spider while visiting family in Birchip, in Victoria’s Mallee Region.

Experts told news.com.au they had never seen such an extreme reaction to a spider bite.

Epworth Emergency deputy director and medical adviser at University of Melbourne’s Australian Venom Research Unit, Associate Professor Bill Nimorakiotakis, said there has never been evidence to suggested a direct link between spider venom and this degree of tissue damage.

“There’s nothing to say it couldn’t happen, but it doesn’t happen with any frequency,” he told news.com.au.

The Medical Journal of Australia previously studied 130 people who had suffered from white-tailed spider bites. The study said none of those with bites suffered from any tissue destruction.

Dr Nimorakiotakis said doctors and patients often pointed the finger at spiders because they were always in proximity to humans and were venomous.

“When I give advice to doctors it is always ‘think of what else it could be beyond pointing the finger at the spider’,” he said.

Dr Nimorakiotakis said there’s a higher chance of an infection causing tissue decay over venom and said the Bairnsdale Ulcer was commonly mistaken for spider bites and not easily picked up. It can only be diagnosed with specialised testing.

The Bairnsdale Ulcer corrodes the skin.Source:News Limited

The Bairnsdale Ulcer has been around for decades but is becoming more prevalent, especially in Victoria and Queensland.

Tens of thousands of people are at risk of catching the gruesome flesh-eating bug, and doctors aren’t sure where it comes from or what causes it.

There have been suggestions from health professionals the bug could be spread by mosquitoes.

Dr Nimorakiotakis said because we know so little about how the ulcer is spread, there was nothing ruling out spiders as carriers of the bug.

It’s easily curable if caught early but, if not, can lead to further complications.

Some sufferers need surgery, some endure extreme scarring and others need to have limbs amputated.

Last year it was reported the bug, also known as the Buruli ulcer, had spread to the Melbourne suburbs of Bentleigh, Hampton and Cheltenham, southeast of the CBD.

“The treatment can be quite horrific,” Dr Nimorakiotakis said. “Some antibiotics do work and some can help allow it to heal but most need a lot of treatment on the area with the infected skin, it’s a bit of a process for it to get better.

“It’s different from infections and redness, you take antibiotics and it gets better, with the ulcer it’s more of a process and commonly missed.”

A white-tailed spider bite may have caused Terry Pareja to have devastating reaction.Source:News Limited

Dr Nimorakiotakis said a friend was recently told by a doctor he was bitten by a spider but after further testing, it was discovered he had the Bairnsdale Ulcer.

Australian Museum Arachnology collection manager Graham Milledge said bites from white-tailed spiders were often fairly minor.

“Unfortunately it has become an urban myth over many years bites cause bad reactions and it’s very difficult to eradicate that,” he said. “The symptoms are fairly minor and generally they’ll clear up within a week. It doesn’t always require medical attention.”

Mr Milledge said white-tailed spiders often spent time around homes to prey on the black house spider.