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Protocol for
Bee Venom Therapy
By Thomas Stearns Lee, NMD
The following protocol is for the information of
health care professionals who will be using Bee Venom Therapy (BVT)
in their practices.
When to use Bee Venom Therapy
Bee Venom Therapy can be used cases of neurological
wasting diseases, demyelinating, neuraesthenic conditions affecting
the limbs or digits, disorders of inflammatory responses locally due
to neural pathology or nutrient deficiency, traumatic damage to soft
or osseous tissue, and acute or chronic conditions that would
improve with the increased efficiency of the inflammatory response
and neural vitality. Consider this approach with challenging
pathologies while continuing standard Naturopathic treatments and
prescribing.
When to not to use Bee Venom Therapy
This procedure is contraindicated for patients on
pharmaceuticals to suppress the immune system, steroid
anti-inflammatories, or narcotics to remove pain sensations.
It is also contraindicated for patients with chronic and current use
of large-dose NSAID agents, the presence of any cancerous tumor
within 3 inches of a treatment site, any known allergies to honey
bee venom or demonstrated hypersensitivity to same, late-stage
pregnancy, proximity (within 10 inches) of surgical implant
materials or devices, or any situation where the vital force of the
patient would obviously not be strengthened by localized trauma.
Cost of Materials
Material costs vary. At present one will pay
about $50 per 10 ml vial, so each 0.1 ml of product costs about 50
cents. It is wise to attempt to purchase these materials
during the spring honey seasons, when they are less expensive.
What form of bee venom is used
Sterile, injectible and hydrated to a potency of 1
mg per 1 ml active Mellitin, within a 10 ml vial can be purchased
from several pharmacies. With this standardized product, 0.1
ml is injected intradermally into the skin only as deeply as a bee's
stinger, and this represents an average-sized bee sting.
What precautions are used
During initial evaluation and after the patient has
been informed of the process, cost, the suggested evaluation period
of three increasingly numerous sessions, and home management of
discomfort (via standard RICE protocols), an initial trial sting of
one-third the normal amount is given on a visible portion of the
forearm or lower leg.
This should take place within a clinical setting
where the practitioner has a pre-loaded syringe of Epinephrine
available (the Bee Sting Kit), knows how to identify the signs of
systemic anaphylaxis, and how to use said syringe. The patient
should also be informed of this precaution protocol, as well as the
extremely unlikely need for concern about honey bee venom.
Treatment protocol
1. Bee Venom triggers a local inflammatory
response which can act as a temporary training event for the
patient's healing response. Observe the trial sting site for
15 minutes during case-taking. A negative indication of
allergic reaction is when no response can be seen other than a
slight reddening at the site. Determine target sites for
whatever planned benefit (local trigger points, acupuncture points,
neural therapy points, dermatome, or reflexology concerns, etc.).
Present a plan for number and location of sites to the supervising
physician and then to the patient.
2. Draw into an appropriate-sized syringe an
equal amount of the Bee Venom material described and 2 percent
Procaine. Place a 30-gauge needle on the syringe and have an
ice cube and a paper towel available. After an alcohol scrub,
press the ice cube against the target site firmly to patient
tolerance for about 15-45 seconds. Upon release, promptly
insert the Venom/Procaine mixture, totaling 0.2 ml per sting, into
the skin at that target point. Proceed and repeat procedure
until all sites have been injected.
3. After the treatment, explain the upcoming
experience to the patient as follows, "You will experience a
swelling and slight aching at those sites for the next several
hours, and either later today or tomorrow the sites will be itchy.
If you must, scratch with some clean cotton or fabric so as not to
injure the skin, and if it gets too aggravating, use an ice cube and
pressure for a few minutes to take the edge off that itchiness."
For patients treating painful conditions, the stings do not usually
hurt much in comparison, and for patients fighting numbness and
paralysis, any sensation is better, even if it is pain.
"Contact me if you feel too uncomfortable, and we'll see you at the
next visit."
Considerations
Never sting on an unresolved previous site.
Use a different point, or wait until the sting has resolved
(typically 1-5 days). Do not add more than 2-3 sites per
visit. If this is to be a longer range of treatments,
prescribe a Bee Sting Kit for Patients to have at home if they
experience systemic allergy. Never add more volume to the site
for more response. The next step up would be two sites within
an inch, then three, etc.
This protocol is from the American Apitherapy
Society, and member physicians are available for consult through
this national organization should the need or interest arise.
Please support their effort, and submit clinical results to the
Journal of the American Apitherapy Society.
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