Getting stung by an elegance coral

[Arylus]

so i got stung, badly. but there is almost no information on the web about what to do and what to expect.
so i though i will record it so others may benefit and learn from my mistake.

i got stung cleaning the aquarium and my mistake was not wearing gloves, normally this is no problem, but if you have wounds on your hands (even when closed with new skin apparently) they can get though easly.
and it hurts about a 20 second intense pain (7-8 out of 10), followed by a dull glow (2-3 out of 10) for about 4-6 hours.
at the time of posting it has been about 12 hours and my had has swollen to the point of making movement difficult with my thumb (where i got stung), and my veins are painful and red up to my elbow.

Tldr, got stung on an existing wound my an elegance coral, this is the aftermath.

 

[Arylus]

so i got stung, badly. but there is almost no information on the web about what to do and what to expect.
so i though i will record it so others may benefit and learn from my mistake.

i got stung cleaning the aquarium and my mistake was not wearing gloves, normally this is no problem, but if you have wounds on your hands (even when closed with new skin apparently) they can get though easly.
and it hurts about a 20 second intense pain (7-8 out of 10), followed by a dull glow (2-3 out of 10) for about 4-6 hours.
at the time of posting it has been about 12 hours and my had has swollen to the point of making movement difficult with my thumb (where i got stung), and my veins are painful and red up to my elbow.

Tldr, got stung on an existing wound my an elegance coral, this is the aftermath.

View attachment 1360459 View attachment 1360460 View attachment 1360461

So, i went to the hospital and it was good that i went, the doctor told me it was acute Lymfangitis. wich if untreated can be a big problem. so now im on antibiotics. this was caused not by the sting directly but by bacteria in the tank.

so, noob lesson 1 always wear gloves when handeling tankwater.

 

[Malifry97]

WOW! Thanks for the documentation

 

[Malifry97]

Crazy that all that was caused by a sting and bacteria

 

[NanoDJS]

I was gonna say that first pic looks like open wound in tank , I work doing mechanical contracting get cut all the time and it really messes with my maintenance schedule , since I will never put open cuts into the tank, I have seen people get REALLY messed up just by being in contact with our tanks water, lots of bacteria in there (hopefully)

 

[Southpaw240]

Gloves a must. Especially with open wounds. The bacteria and injection are almost guaranteed. Learned the hard way myself.

 

[andrewkw]

I would suspect you have an allergy. Be extra careful handling anything that can sting. Lots of people, myself included have fragged elegance without issue, however you never know if something like this is going to happen until it does so better safe than sorry.

 

[fishface NJ]

Wow! Glad to read you got antibiotics.

 

[Arylus]

I was gonna say that first pic looks like open wound in tank , I work doing mechanical contracting get cut all the time and it really messes with my maintenance schedule , since I will never put open cuts into the tank, I have seen people get REALLY messed up just by being in contact with our tanks water, lots of bacteria in there (hopefully)

well, it was closed with fresh skin, so i though it could not do any harm right? well wrong.
i have the same problem, im an automotive technician and wound are very common. messes with my schedule too.
ill go and find some watertight gloves or something.

 

[Arylus]

I would suspect you have an allergy. Be extra careful handling anything that can sting. Lots of people, myself included have fragged elegance without issue, however you never know if something like this is going to happen until it does so better safe than sorry.

well i don't seem allergic, would be alot worse if that was true. and i have not had any problems handeling them with intact skin. though i do need to protect myself better.

 

[Sarah24!]

Hello,

From your pics, you became infected with Lymphangitis, which is where bacteria or a virus enters the blood line that carries the white blood cells. When you have tracer marks they are always going to the closest lymph gland where it flushes the fluid out. This is very common with people who garden as well. It’s also where one can get a staphylococcus or aka bacteria infection through a current wound that hasn’t healed, and even a new one. It doesn’t matter if it’s saltwater or freshwater, it can be any kind of bacteria, it can even be with potting soil etc. it doesn’t have to be per say in water, but what must be present is a new wound or a current one that hasn’t healed. Depending on the immune system people react different but is always good to see a dr if it’s becomes swollen, and or has tracing marks to the closest lymph gland. It also has very similar symptoms to that of the flu. Most people can have chills, fever, nausea, sore body ache, etc. depending how serious most dr prescribe amoxicillin and if there is pain, ibuprofen for swelling or pain. What is important to know is, you can still get this even with gloves on. If the water seeps into the gloves and your wound has not healed, your still going to get it. Same with even potting soil, you may have gloves on, but if dirt gets down you will still get it. Washing your hands helps a lot, and if you have a open or healing wound, rub peroxide on it afterwards. Definitely hope you heal soon.

 

[Arylus]

Hello,

From your pics, you became infected with Lymphangitis, which is where bacteria or a virus enters the blood line that carries the white blood cells. When you have tracer marks they are always going to the closest lymph gland where it flushes the fluid out. This is very common with people who garden as well. It’s also where one can get a staphylococcus or aka bacteria infection through a current wound that hasn’t healed, and even a new one. It doesn’t matter if it’s saltwater or freshwater, it can be any kind of bacteria, it can even be with potting soil etc. it doesn’t have to be per say in water, but what must be present is a new wound or a current one that hasn’t healed. Depending on the immune system people react different but is always good to see a dr if it’s becomes swollen, and or has tracing marks to the closest lymph gland. It also has very similar symptoms to that of the flu. Most people can have chills, fever, nausea, sore body ache, etc. depending how serious most dr prescribe amoxicillin and if there is pain, ibuprofen for swelling or pain. What is important to know is, you can still get this even with gloves on. If the water seeps into the gloves and your wound has not healed, your still going to get it. Same with even potting soil, you may have gloves on, but if dirt gets down you will still get it. Washing your hands helps a lot, and if you have a open or healing wound, rub peroxide on it afterwards. Definitely hope you heal soon.

this is exactly what my doctor told me, and more. interesting that a simple scratch can do this. but the symptoms you discribe is exactly what i am feeling right now.
so peroxide huh, i think i will get some. just to be sure, also water tight gloves.

but thank you for your response, i hope this helps someone else in the future

 

[Sarah24!]

this is exactly what my doctor told me, and more. interesting that a simple scratch can do this. but the symptoms you discribe is exactly what i am feeling right now.
so peroxide huh, i think i will get some. just to be sure, also water tight gloves.

but thank you for your response, i hope this helps someone else in the future

Hello,

I’m in my second year of residency, and work in the er so I see a lot of it. The gloves wound not matter if they are water proof or not, the idea is to not let bacterial infections to the wound. I say this because even something dry can do the same thing. I would focus on if you have cuts, clean and wash often, and then maybe use your other hand. But since your a mechanic, this easily could have come from there or anything that had the bacteria.

Id always suggest using gloves in a reef tank anyway, potting etc. but washing and peroxide will help make that happen less. Drinking cranberry juice also helps, in more ways when your sick like this and or flu symptoms.
There are lots and lots of nasty critters out there, and having a very strong immune system helps a lot.

 

[alshayazoo]

The exact same thing happened to me. 2 years ago I had a small scrape on one finger and got stung on the cut by my elegance coral. Ended up in the hospital on IV antibiotics with my hand/arm swollen to double normal size and an infection creeping up my vein. Took 5 days for the swelling to go down. Be careful when working in your tank.....

 

[Terri Caton]

If you have a new wound you can cover it with Tegaderm prior to putting on your gloves. This will help a lot with keeping bacteria out.

 

[Alvaro_Spain]

The exact same thing happened to me. 2 years ago I had a small scrape on one finger and got stung on the cut by my elegance coral. Ended up in the hospital on IV antibiotics with my hand/arm swollen to double normal size and an infection creeping up my vein. Took 5 days for the swelling to go down. Be careful when working in your tank.....

WOW

 

[Southpaw240]

So being your a mechanic you should always wear gloves, cut or no cut. Because the chemicals, dirt an oils our hands are exposed to daily can cause contamination in your tank. I'm a mechanic too and know my hands are never perfectly clean.

 

[raketemensch]

People seem to like these.

 

[TK_KW]

Stung Oct 3rd, and still hasn't healed up. I'm probably scared for life....lesson learned. Stung pretty bad, Well played Elegance......Well played

 

[CindyKz]

I spent 4 days in the hospital on multiple IV antibiotics (I think I had 5 different ones through the course of my stay). Also a trip to the OR. All from a scratch on my thumb from the rocks in my tank. It's no joke.

Now I use these: