Marine Animal Bite Or Sting

GENERAL INFORMATION:

What is a marine animal bite or sting? A marine animal bite or sting is an injury caused by an animal that lives in salt water. The injury may be from a poison or wound caused by the marine animal, or both. Sting injuries may range from a mild rash or skin irritation to a life-threatening serious allergy-like reaction. A bite wound may be deep and cause injury to bones, muscles, and other body parts. It may sometimes lead to severe loss of blood and tissues.

What causes a marine animal bite or sting? A marine animal bite may be caused by animals with razor-sharp teeth and strong jaws. These marine animals include any of the following:

• Barracudas: These are fast swimming fishes that are known to hunt other marine animals and attack shiny objects.
  
  
• Moray eels: Moray eels are snake-like animals with fang-like teeth. They live in holes, corals, and rocky areas.
  
  
• Sharks: Different kinds of sharks can attack people. Shark attacks are more likely to happen during the summer months, in the late afternoon, or at night. Bite wounds caused by sharks often become infected.

• Animals with stinging tentacles: These animals inject poisons through their tentacles when they come in contact with a person's skin. Tentacles are arm-like structures that are covered with stinging cells, and mainly used to catch prey. Broken tentacles can still sting for weeks or months after being separated from the animal, or even if dried.
  
  
  • Jellyfish: Different kinds of jellyfish cause different degrees of stinging. Jellyfish include stinging nettles, purple jellyfish, lion's mane jellyfish, and the box jellyfish. The box jellyfish, commonly called sea wasp, is a large jellyfish and is the most dangerous.
    
    
  • Portuguese man-of-war: This may be seen as a blue floating bubble with many long tentacles attached. It is also called the bluebottle jellyfish.
    
    
  • Sea anemones: These are multicolored animals that are often found in shallow waters and tidal pools. The larval (baby) forms of certain anemones may get under bathing suits and cause stings. This leads to a condition called sea bather's eruption where rashes, itchiness, or pain develops in covered areas.
  
  
• Animals with spines: These animals also cause open wounds when they inject poison.
  
  
  • Catfish: Catfish has poison glands and spines or barbs that may be hard to remove. Puncture wounds caused by this animal often come with bacterial (germs) infection.
    
    
  • Cone shells: These are also called cone snails. These animals have poisonous, dart-like structures that are used to stun and kill fish.
    
    
  • Sea urchins: These animals are covered by a hard shell with long, easy to break poisonous spines.
    
    
  • Stinging fishes: These animals include the lionfish, scorpionfish, and stonefish. They have spines on different parts of their bodies. These spines are sharp and release venom when they go into the skin. Most injuries happen when a person without foot protection wades in the water and steps on the fish. The stonefish poison may cause the most severe and life-threatening injury.
    
    
  • Stingrays: Stingrays often stay at the bottom and may be found buried in shallow, sandy areas. Injury usually happens when it gets stepped on and it hurls its whip-like tail with a poisonous tip.

What are the signs and symptoms of a marine animal bite or sting?

• Bite wounds: Bite wounds may be shaped like a half moon, straight, v-shaped, or a puncture. You may have severe bleeding, throbbing pain, or trouble moving the bitten area. Sometimes, bones may be broken and large areas of tissue completely bitten off. The bite usually becomes infected and pus may form. The area around the infected wound may be red, tender, or feel warm when touched. You may also develop a fever. Severe skin nicks or scrapes may be seen from contact with a shark's skin.
  
  
• Stings: You may have pain, bleeding wounds, or swelling at the site of the sting. The pain may be burning, pricking, or stinging. There may also be itching, tingling, or numbness at the area where the contact was made. You may see redness, rashes, blisters, or changes in skin color caused by the body's reaction from the poison. You may also have nausea (upset stomach) and vomiting (throwing up). Other symptoms may include headache, chills, fever, sweating, weakness, and muscle cramps. Bad stings may cause a severe allergic reaction, and you may have trouble breathing, fainting, and convulsions.

How is a marine animal bite or sting diagnosed? You may have any of the following:

• Physical exam: Caregivers will closely look at your injury, including the area around it. He will check to see how deep the wound is, and look for signs of infection. How well you move and feel things in your injured body part may be tested.
  
  
• Blood tests: You may need blood taken for tests. The blood can be taken from a blood vessel in your hand, arm, or the bend in your elbow. It is tested to see how your body is doing. It can give your caregivers more information about your health condition. You may need to have blood drawn more than once.
  
  
• Ultrasound: An ultrasound is a simple test that looks inside of your body. Sound waves are used to show pictures of your organs and tissues on a TV-like screen.
  
  
• Wound culture: This is a method to grow and identify the germs that may be in your wound. This helps caregivers learn what kind of infection you may have and what medicine is best to treat it.
  
  
• X-ray: This is a picture of your bones and tissues in the wound area. Caregivers use these pictures to look for broken bones or objects such as spines or teeth. You may need to have an x-ray, especially if the wound is near a joint or bone.

How is a marine animal bite or sting treated? Treatment will depend on what marine animal caused the injury, and the location and severity of the injury. It also depends on how long you have had the injury and whether other parts were affected. You may need any of the following:

• Wound cleaning: Pieces of teeth, tentacles, or spine left inside the skin will be removed carefully. The skin may also be placed in hot, non-scalding water for some time. The wound will be cleaned with soap, water, and antiseptics (germ-killing solutions). This helps wash away germs which may be in the wound, and decrease the chances of infection. Irrigation (flushing) with sterile (germ-free) water further cleans the wound. Objects, dirt, or dead tissues from the open wound will be removed with debridement (surgical cleaning). Caregivers may drain the wound to clean out pus.
  
  
• Medicines: Your caregiver will give you antibiotic medicine to fight infection. This may be given through your vein, taken by mouth, or applied directly to your wound. You may also be given medicine to ease your symptoms, such as pain, swelling, and allergic reactions. Tetanus shots, immune globulins, and antivenom may also be given. Supportive treatment may be given, such as oxygen or blood transfusion.
  
  
• Other procedures: Your wound may be left open until it heals or closed using stitches (threads). You may need surgery to repair a fracture (broken bone) or damaged joint, tendon, or nerve. Surgery to rebuild or remove the body part with the bite wound may also be done.

What first aid should be done for a marine animal bite or sting? You may do the following when you have a marine animal bite or sting:

• Bites:
  
  
  • Flush the bitten area with water. Clean it with mild soap and water to prevent infection.
    
    
  • Apply direct pressure on the wound using a clean cloth to stop any bleeding.
    
    
  • Do not remove teeth coming from the marine animal that may be deep in your muscles or tissues.
  
  
• Stings:
  
  
  • If tentacles are attached, pour vinegar on the area for at least 10 minutes before removing them. Do not use alcohol. Alcohol may cause the tentacle to fire more poison. Use forceps (tweezers) to gently remove the tentacles from the skin. Do not touch the tentacles with your hands. You may also remove the tentacles by applying shaving cream or baking soda and then using a razor (blade). Sand and seawater paste may also be used to scrape off the tentacle using a shell or plastic credit card.
    
    
  • Soak the affected area in hot water that can be tolerated for 60 to 90 minutes.
    
    
  • Carefully take out the pieces of spines that were left broken inside the skin. Put on gloves when removing the spines. Do not try to remove pieces that are inside a deep cut or if they are in a joint or nerve.
    
    
  • Wash the sting site using soap and water. If available, you may apply an antibiotic ointment on a broken skin or hydrocortisone cream to relieve pain.

Where can I get more information? Contact the following for more information about marine animal bite or sting:

• American Academy of Family Physicians
  PO Box 11210
  Shawnee Mission, KS 66207-1210
  Phone: 1-913-906-6000
  Web Address: http://www.aafp.org
  

CARE AGREEMENT:

You have the right to help plan your care. To help with this plan, you must learn about your health condition and how it may be treated. You can then discuss treatment options with your caregivers. Work with them to decide what care may be used to treat you. You always have the right to refuse treatment.

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