Your local poison control center can be reached directly by calling the national toll-free Poison Help hotline from anywhere in the United States. This national hotline will let you talk to experts in poisoning.
They will give you further instructions. This is a free and confidential service. All local poison control centers in the United States use this national number. You should call if you have any questions about poisoning or poison prevention. It does NOT need to be an emergency. You can call for any reason, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The health care provider will measure and monitor the person's vital signs, including temperature, pulse, breathing rate, and blood pressure.
Symptoms will be treated. The person may receive:. Most jellyfish stings improve within hours, but some stings can lead to skin irritation or rashes that last for weeks. Contact your provider if you continue to have itching at the sting site. Topical anti-inflammatory creams may be helpful. Certain box jellyfish stings can kill a person within minutes. Other box jellyfish stings can lead to death in 4 to 48 hours after a sting due to "Irukandji syndrome.
It is important to carefully monitor box jellyfish sting victims for hours after a sting. Seek medical attention right away for any breathing difficulties, chest or abdominal pains, or profuse sweating.
In: Kliegman RM, St. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; chap Treatment for jellyfish stings mainly revolves around pain relief or healing allergic reactions if they occur.
Most jellyfish stings can be treated right away with a salt water or hot water rinse. This will help decrease the burning sensation from the sting. It may also help to take a hot shower as soon as possible. A recent study concluded that jellyfish stings are treated more effectively by hot water than by ice packs. A pain reliever such as ibuprofen Advil could also lessen the effect of the sting.
Vinegar is also a popular remedy for jellyfish stings. But the effectiveness of both of these remedies is inconclusive. Using a vinegar rinse may help in the case of some jellyfish species, but not others. A reaction to a more dangerous species of jellyfish will need to be treated with antivenin. This is a special drug formulated to combat the venom of a specific breed of animal. Antivenin for jellyfish stings can only be found in hospitals. This has never been proven. Treating the area of your sting with salt water from the ocean or a hot water rinse is a much better and more effective method of treatment.
Rinsing with cold, fresh water might seem like a good idea, but it could activate more jellyfish stingers if there are still some in your skin. Opting for a hot shower instead will help rinse the stingers out without making the sting worse. Certain bodies of water are known to contain large numbers of jellyfish, called blooms. Swimming in bodies of water where blooms of jellyfish are known to be increases your chance of getting stung.
Swimming downwind also makes getting stung more likely, as jellyfish travel with the current. People who fish, dive, or go boating in deep waters are all more likely to get jellyfish stings. Same goes for people who scuba dive without protective equipment and people who surf.
There is always a chance you may encounter a jellyfish, but you can take steps to make getting stung less likely. The most common type of jellyfish sting comes from bluebottles also called Portuguese Man-of-War , which are found all around the coastline of Australia.
Where the jellyfish tentacles have made contact with the person's skin, there will usually be severe pain and a red or purple whip-like lesion. It's therefore very dangerous and risky to have contact with this jellyfish. Stings by bluebottle jellyfish are the most common in Australia. These can cause intense pain and sores in the areas of skin which have been in contact with the jellyfish tentacles.
The pain usually decreases or stops after 1—2 hours and the sores may fade after a few days. You may also have a rash or redness in the area which was stung. It can be hard to know which species of jellyfish has stung you. Treat any sting as if it is a sting by a major box jellyfish or other box jellyfish if:.
If Irukandji-like symptoms occur as described above , call triple zero for an ambulance then:. Vinegar should not be used for bluebottle stings since it doesn't help the sting and may increase the person's pain. You can also swim near a lifeguard who will be able to give you first aid or, if your symptoms are severe, call an ambulance for you. Learn more here about the development and quality assurance of healthdirect content.
The Irukandji jellyfish is a small jellyfish approximately two centimetres in diameter, making it difficult for swimmers to notice in the water. Read more on Queensland Health website. Read more on NT Health website. Box jellyfish, commonly called stingers in northern Australia, are found from October to May in coastal waters off tropical Australia, from Bundaberg in Queensland to Geraldton in Western Australia.
First aid tips for bites and stings from some of the most venomous creatures in the world - snakes, spiders, jellyfish, blue ringed octopus and cone snail - all of which are found in Australia. Read more on myDr website. Carefully remove any remaining bluebottle tentacles by gently washing the area in sea water, taking care to avoid further stings.
Read more on St John Ambulance Australia website. Growing up in northern Australia can be a magical and safe experience. But parents need to be aware of the risks posed by life in the tropics. Knowing where Queensland's most dangerous creatures live and how to treat an attack can help save a life.
0コメント