Marine Bites Stings and Cuts

Marine Bites, Stings and Cuts

About the only thing smaller than the amount of flesh covered by a thong bikini is your risk of an up-close-and-too-personal encounter with some sort of sea critter.

"Sunburn is still the most common and probably the most serious problem a beach-goer faces," says Glenn G. Soppe, M.D., a San Diego physician who lectures on aquatic bites and stings. Still, those murky depths hold more surprises than the contents of Davy Jones's locker.

Minor fish bites should be handled with the usual first-aid treatment like any other wound, and they don't present any extra risk of infection. (There's no such thing as a rabid barracuda!) But what about stings from jellyfish and stingrays or cuts from coral, sponge and common seashells? These nautical nuisances may initially seem as frightening as losing your car keys in the sand, but they're usually remedied a lot faster. And here's how.

Take charge with a charge card. You can remove jellyfish tentacles with a credit card, and it won't even show up on your monthly bill. Jellyfish tentacles that get embedded in the skin deliver an attention-grabbing venom. Though painful, the venom is usually harmless (unless you swim in the South Pacific, where box jellyfish stings can be fatal).

"You have to scrape them out, just as you would remove a bee stinger," says Dr. Soppe. "If you try to pull them out with your fingers, you'll inject more venom into your skin. If you have trouble scraping out the tentacles, put some baking soda or shaving cream on your skin to make it easier."

Apply some tenderizing treatment. It may sound as hard to swallow as a cut of gristly beef, but meat tenderizers help neutralize the venom of jellyfish and other sea life. "Most of these stings are protein in nature, and meat tenderizer is meant to degrade protein," explains Arthur Jacknowitz, Pharm.D., professor and chairman of clinical pharmacy at West Virginia University School of Pharmacy in Morgantown.

If you're swimming in an area where there are jellyfish, take along Adolph's or McCormick tenderizer (you can use it for that beachside barbecue, too). "Make a thick paste of meat tenderizer and salt water, and pat it on the skin in the first few minutes after being stung to get substantial relief," suggests Dr. Jacknowitz. When buying meat tenderizer, look for brands that contain either papain or bromelain, the active ingredients that dissolve jellyfish venom. (Bromelain can cause dermatitis in some people, however, so don't apply any more if the skin area begins to look red and inflamed.)

Revitalize with vinegar. Kitchen vinegar is also effective on jellyfish stings. "Just make a 50-50 mixture of vinegar and salt water and apply it to the sting site," says Dr. Soppe. In a pinch, applying some diluted lime juice or ammonia to the site may also work.

Purify with peroxide. "Of course, the best remedy is a good defense. If you don't know what it is, don't touch it, and wear shoes while walking in tide pools," says Dr. Soppe. "But if you happen to cut yourself or get an abrasion from a piece of coral or a sea urchin, give the wound a thorough washing with hydrogen peroxide, followed by a good soaking in diluted vinegar."

Tape provides a sticky solution. You can remove the fine, hard-to-get-to spicules of a sponge or coral by applying a piece of adhesive tape to the abrasion site and then removing it. When you pull off the tape, you pull up the tiny spicules. Then bathe the area with vinegar, suggests Constance L. Rosson, M.D., who practices general medicine at Good Samaritan Hospital in Portland, Oregon.

Get into hot water. "Stingray venom is heat-liable, meaning that heat degrades the protein that causes the pain. Your best bet is to simply soak the area for at least an hour in water that's as hot as you can stand without scalding yourself," says Dr. Soppe. Hot water from the tap is usually around 120°F, which is hot enough for this treatment.

Since the fins of catfish and spines of starfish produce a similar type of venom, adds Dr. Rosson, the hot-water treatment is equally effective after an encounter with either of these sea creatures.