Ant sting in military forces on three Persian islands of Abu-Musa, Great Tonb and Lesser Tonb

Ants with the ability of biting and injecting poison to human body are called sting ants. This study was conducted to identify and determine the ant types and the prevalence of ant sting and related epidemiological factors in three Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu-Musa islands, Iran. This descriptive cross-sectional study was performed during Jan-July 2010 in Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu-Musa islands on 318 military individuals who were selected by random sampling method. The ant collection was done by active hand-catch method. The ant sting prevalence and related epidemiological factors were determined by questionnaire. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistical methods including Chi-square test, Mann-Whitney test and Spearman and Gamma correlation by SPSS 12 software. The species of sting ant was Pachycondyla sennaarensis Mayr, 1862. The mean prevalence of sting was 70.1%. The seasonal incidence of sting in three islands had the same pattern and was more common in spring and summer. 84.4% of ant sting had occurred in limbs. The main symptoms caused by the ant stings include pain, severe itching and local inflammation and blisters in some cases. Although sting bite is not much dangerous in the studied islands and does not lead to anaphylactic shock and death, the pain and itching and burning would cause discomfort for soldiers and reduce their efficiency. Therefore, preventive measures and control of these ants should be considered.