Caterpillar dermatitis

SUMMARY A 3‐year‐old girl presented with recurrent urticarial eruptions presumed due to infestation of her garden with Euproctis edwardsi. Euproctis edwardsi , the mistletoe browntail moth, is a variety of hairy caterpillar widely distributed in south‐eastern Australia. They are often called‘woolly bears’by children. These caterpillars possess barbed hairs that fragment readily and are difficult to extract from the skin in one piece. Itching, urticarial wheals and papular eruptions can follow contact with the caterpillars or their detached hairs. The hairlets may be identified by microscopy from skin scrapings and can be removed by tape stripping or with the aid of fine forceps. The skin lesions are treated symptomatically with calamine lotion, sodium bicarbonate solution and antihistamines. Infestation with Euproctis edwardsi can be minimized by removal of mistletoe from eucalyptus trees and by spraying affected areas with white oil or carbaryl 0.1%.