Marine animal stings or bites

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Jellyfish sting

Stings - marine animals; Bites - marine animals

• Wear gloves, if possible, when removing stingers.
• Wipe off stingers or tentacles with a towel.
• Wash the area with salt water.
• Soak the wound in as hot of water as the patient can tolerate for 30 - 90 minutes, if told to do so by trained personnel.
• For some types of stings/bites, you may be told to apply vinegar or a meat tenderizer/water solution to neutralize the venom.

• Do NOT attempt to remove stingers without protecting your own hands.
• Do NOT raise the affected body part above the level of the heart.
• Do NOT allow the patient to exercise.
• Do NOT give any medication, unless told to do so by a health care provider.

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Seek medical help (call 911 or your local emergency number) if the person has difficulty breathing, chest pain, nausea, vomiting, or uncontrolled bleeding, if the sting site develops swelling or discoloration, or for other body-wide (generalized) symptoms.

Review Date: 01/13/2010
Reviewed By: Jacob L. Heller, MD, MHA, Emergency Medicine, Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, Washington. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org).