Post by Sunny on Mar 25, 2013 8:56:07 GMT 4
Guys,
It was inevitable I suppose - you target catfish and if you are not completely spot-on with your handling procedures you will get a spine puncture or scratch.
I left the fish in the bottom of the boat whilst I had my back turned - to sort the camera out - and the fish flapped about and rolled against my ankle. The initial pain is annoying, but minor. Later in the day my whole foot swelled and put pressure over the whole ankle joint, making walking and standing excruciatingly painful.
It seems that treatment is very simple….immerse the wound in hot water (40 degrees Celsius) for 30-90 minutes ….how easy is that !
The venom is protein based and breaks down in heats over 40 degrees
The following extract is from a divers site www.scuba-doc.com/inject.htm :
The fins of the saltwater catfish have a complex toxin made up of a mix of high molecular weight proteins and low molecular weight compounds. Like many marine toxins, this venom is believed to be denatured at temperatures above 105 F.
Besides intense pain that appears to be out of proportion for the physical injury, systemic symptoms can occur but are rare. They include muscle cramps, tremor, fatigue, syncope and even CV collapse. Treatment in the ER consists of immersion of the body part in hot water at approx. 110 F, debridement (cleansing) of the wound completely and liberal irrigation with hot water. Tetanus coverage is provided. It's a good idea to treat with antibiotics that cover Vibrio vulnificus, usually a 3rd gen cephalosporin.
So 40C hot water for 30 minutes minimum and there should be no need for a trip to the hospital….unlike me, who didn’t know the above and ended up with the trip to Casualty and a course of antibiotics and anti-inflammatories
It was inevitable I suppose - you target catfish and if you are not completely spot-on with your handling procedures you will get a spine puncture or scratch.
I left the fish in the bottom of the boat whilst I had my back turned - to sort the camera out - and the fish flapped about and rolled against my ankle. The initial pain is annoying, but minor. Later in the day my whole foot swelled and put pressure over the whole ankle joint, making walking and standing excruciatingly painful.
It seems that treatment is very simple….immerse the wound in hot water (40 degrees Celsius) for 30-90 minutes ….how easy is that !
The venom is protein based and breaks down in heats over 40 degrees
The following extract is from a divers site www.scuba-doc.com/inject.htm :
The fins of the saltwater catfish have a complex toxin made up of a mix of high molecular weight proteins and low molecular weight compounds. Like many marine toxins, this venom is believed to be denatured at temperatures above 105 F.
Besides intense pain that appears to be out of proportion for the physical injury, systemic symptoms can occur but are rare. They include muscle cramps, tremor, fatigue, syncope and even CV collapse. Treatment in the ER consists of immersion of the body part in hot water at approx. 110 F, debridement (cleansing) of the wound completely and liberal irrigation with hot water. Tetanus coverage is provided. It's a good idea to treat with antibiotics that cover Vibrio vulnificus, usually a 3rd gen cephalosporin.
So 40C hot water for 30 minutes minimum and there should be no need for a trip to the hospital….unlike me, who didn’t know the above and ended up with the trip to Casualty and a course of antibiotics and anti-inflammatories
