Accidents with Lepidoptera (Insecta): Biology, Poisonous, Clinical Manifestations, Treatment, Prevention, and Therapeutic Possibilities

Accidents triggered by contact with winged adult forms of moths and accidents caused by contact with larvae. These accidents are caused by contact with the bristles on the abdomen of females of certain species, belonging to the genus Hylesia Hübner, 1820 (Family: Hemileucidae). Therefore, the simple fact of penetration of the bristles seems to be capable of causing intense inflammatory, popular, and pruritic reactions. Pararama (pararamose) is the common name for a stinging caterpillar found in the artificial rubber plantations of Pará, Brazil, the larval stage of the moth Premolis semirufa (Walker, 1856) (Famíly: Erebidae). Therefore, accidental contact with the small bristles of the caterpillars or with those of the cocoons causes a chronic inflammatory reaction in the interphalangeal joints that leads to ankylosis. The morbid condition mainly affects rubber tappers and is classified as an occupational disease. Eruca=larva; erucism is poisoning caused by a moth larva. The main families of Lepidoptera fireworms that cause erucism accidents are Megalopygidae, Saturniidae, and Arctiidae. The caterpillars of the Megalopygidae family have a body covered with long, harmless bristles that cover the smaller, sharp spines that carry poison glands this manuscript aims to report the biological characteristics of venomous Lepidoptera (Insecta) and their biological, clinical manifestations, treatment, prevention, and therapeutic possibilities. That paper is a narrative review of the literature, which is designed to explain and discuss a certain subject from a theoretical or contextual perspective, to allow the reader to acquire or update knowledge on a specific topic. The scientific articles that made up this review were searched on Google Scholar, Biological Abstract, HAL, Qeios, ResearchGate, Scielo, and SSRN. The following descriptors in Health Sciences (DeCS) were used: biological therapy, larva, wound, debridement, and healing. The following inclusion criteria were considered: original articles and reviews, published nationally and internationally in full, available electronically, and published in Portuguese, English, and Spanish. The exclusion criteria were dissertations, theses, monographs, and conclusion work, duplicates, and those that required payment to access the content in full.