Insect bite and sting guide

Online care for local insect bite or sting reactions

For adults with itchy bites or swelling at a sting site, without symptoms elsewhere in the body. A physician reviews photos and writes a care plan.

Start online

Start a $59 online review for Insect bite or sting reaction.

Itchy or swollen insect bites and local sting reactions in adults may fit photo-supported care when there are no whole-body symptoms. The physician reviews your photos and history and writes a care plan. The plan may cover cold compresses, hydrocortisone cream, and an oral antihistamine for itch when safe for you.

If treatment is appropriate, your physician can send a non-controlled prescription to your pharmacy and provide portal instructions for the next step.

Start this visit See response times

Quick facts

You must be physically located in Virginia or West Virginia at the time of request.
Starts at $59
No insurance needed
No app download
Physician review around the clock
Non-controlled prescriptions can be sent to your pharmacy when appropriate
A work or school note can be included when medically appropriate
Response times apply 24/7, every day

Common symptoms

A cluster of itchy mosquito bites
Itchy flea or bed bug bites
Swelling at a bee, wasp, or hornet sting site
Itchy fire ant stings

May fit online care

Adults 18 and older
Adults with itchy or swollen insect bites
A bee, wasp, or hornet sting with a reaction limited to the sting site
No whole-body symptoms
Photos and the history of the bite or sting available for review

Look for another care setting

Trouble breathing, wheezing, throat tightness or hoarseness; swelling of the lips, tongue, face or throat, or hives or swelling spreading to other parts of the body after a bite or sting; chest pain, a racing heartbeat, dizziness, fainting, confusion, vomiting or a headache; a sting inside the mouth or throat, or many stings at once from a swarm; a possible black widow bite with pain or muscle cramps spreading to the chest, belly or back; or fever with a spreading red or black spotty rash (call 911; use an epinephrine auto-injector if you have one).
A possible black widow or brown recluse bite without those symptoms, a sting or bite on the eyelid or eye, redness, streaks, warmth or swelling that is spreading or getting worse after the second day, pus, fever or chills, swelling of most of an arm or leg or numbness or color change in the hand or foot, or a dark blister, sore or open wound at the bite (same-day in-person care).
A round expanding red rash or bull's-eye pattern, or a tick that was attached (use the Tick bite option).
Symptoms lasting more than 10 days, joint swelling, body aches or feeling tired all the time after the bite.
A past whole-body reaction to a sting, or a weakened immune system.

What to have ready

Photos of the bites or sting site
What insect bit or stung you, if known
How the itching or swelling has changed
Whether you have symptoms elsewhere in your body

What happens next

Standard

$59

Within 6 hours

Priority

$99

Within 3 hours

Rush

$149

Within 1 hour

Start the request on the website, answer a few questions to check that this visit fits you, and choose how fast you want an answer (the response window). If your concern still fits this service, a physician reviews it and sends you a secure update after you sign in. When appropriate, non-controlled prescriptions can be sent to your pharmacy, and a basic work or school note can be included at physician discretion.

Your physician

Every visit is personally reviewed by Ankur Fadia, MD. He is board-certified, has extra training in heart care (a cardiology fellowship), and is a member of Alpha Omega Alpha, a medical honor society. He is licensed in Virginia and West Virginia, and your care is never handed off to someone else.

Verify Virginia medical license Verify West Virginia medical license Verify board certification

Can an insect bite or sting be reviewed online?

If you are an adult with itching or swelling only around the bite, and no symptoms affecting your whole body, photo-based care may fit. The doctor looks at your photos and your history and decides if this option is right for you.

What can the care plan include?

The doctor's written plan may include cold packs, hydrocortisone cream, and an antihistamine (allergy medicine) taken by mouth for itching, when it is safe for you. The doctor decides which care is appropriate.

What should my photos and history show?

Have photos of the bites or sting site ready. Describe the insect if known, how the reaction has changed, and whether symptoms occur elsewhere in your body.

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