BajaNomad

Cellulitus

Cypress - 8-11-2014 at 10:40 AM

Got P-nched by a blue crab Fri. evening, really nailed the little finger of my left hand, bled a little, didn't think much of it. Sat. morn, a little red and painful, Sat. night swollen and hurting. Went to emergency room at around 3:00am Sun. morn. Gave me two hours worth of antibiotic drip and now on antibiotic pills for ten days. Bad stuff. Any nomads ever have a dose of it?

bajabuddha - 8-11-2014 at 10:47 AM

Crabs are 'houseflies of the sea'; tasty little buggers, but they feast on whatever matter is handy, especially decaying stuff. Same goes with most bottom-dwellers, lots of nasty microbes down there. I'm a firm believer of using Triple-A ointment any time I break skin in ocean water; some swear by it, some swear at it.

Be sure to take the whole regimen of your pills. Also, ask your pharmacist (or look it up in a PDR) if your antibiotic makes you photo-sensitive while taking it; sun can really screw up your skin for the next couple of weeks if so.

[Edited on 8-11-2014 by bajabuddha]

Cypress - 8-11-2014 at 10:51 AM

bajabuddha, Yes , the antibiotic will make me photo-sensitive. I will get some Triple-A ointment. Is it readily available? Thanks for the reply.

bajabuddha - 8-11-2014 at 11:00 AM

It's OTC in the States, available everywhere. It's a combination of Mycitracin, Bacitracin and Neosporin, any one of which will do, but you should be able to find it easily. I recommend a good peroxide cleaning, and AAA w/ a Band-Aid cover for at least the first 2 - 3 days, change dressing once a day unless it gets spooged, then more often... works for me.

Cypress - 8-11-2014 at 11:07 AM

Bajabuddha, Thanks.:yes:

55steve - 8-11-2014 at 12:16 PM

Yep - nicked my ankle while unpacking the boat after a trip to BoLA - just a tiny scrape that didn't even bleed. I didn't give it a second thought but the next day it was sore, the day after it was real sore! I went to urgent care on the 3rd day and I could barely walk and I was in a lot of pain. The doc was on the fence as to sending me straight to the E.R. - he opted for an I.V. antibiotic and a regimen of more antibiotics. I left there on crutches and was laid up for a week in pain and a very swollen leg.

Even after everything returned to normal, I still had pain in the ankle joint for more than a month.

Loretana - 8-11-2014 at 12:36 PM

Cypress.....

I'm thinking now of my late neighbor here in Loreto.....he injured his toe on the 4th of July......and died on July 18th. We have been told he had a staph infection.........:(

Thanks for your report....too bad Gary didn't get proper care!!

vandenberg - 8-11-2014 at 12:40 PM

After being stung by a stingray and doing the hot water treatment, I ended up with painful cellulitus about a week after the initial event. Swollen and red ankle, nasty looking.

Anti biotics took care of it though.

woody with a view - 8-11-2014 at 01:21 PM

good info to keep in the folds of the brain!

Maron - 8-11-2014 at 01:39 PM

Has a case of it several years ago. Some of the most severe pain I have ever experienced. Glad you are doing better.

bajalinda - 8-11-2014 at 02:01 PM

I also had a bout of cellulitis a couple of years ago - it's nothing to fool around with and needs medical attention. Antibiotics cleared it up for me too.

[Edited on 8-11-2014 by bajalinda]

bajabuddha - 8-11-2014 at 02:06 PM

Cellulitis is nothing to mess with; it's a deep-tissue infection and Staphylococcus is one nasty critter. The Triple A antibiotic is good to use when the wound is fresh and avoid getting an infection spreading; but once the surrounding area is red, swollen and hot feeling, it's time for the Full Monty of treatment. Especially if you have red 'lines' running uphill from the site.

Stingrays are especially known for all kinds of infectious bacteria on their swords; even with the 'hot water treatment', which by the way is first line of defense, one should still go in and have the wound debrided (cleansed w/ peroxide, etc.) and a series of antibiotics too. That's from a REAL doctor at the Army base in San Lucas; good folks there.

Cypress - 8-12-2014 at 04:25 AM

The antibiotics are doing their job, the infection is subsiding. Thank goodness. With all the strange flesh eating bacteria showing up here and there, any unusual acting infection is really spooky. Thanks for the replies.:D

bkbend - 8-12-2014 at 08:33 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Cypress
The antibiotics are doing their job, the infection is subsiding. Thank goodness. With all the strange flesh eating bacteria showing up here and there, any unusual acting infection is really spooky. Thanks for the replies.:D


Thank YOU for bringing it to our attention. I'm careless, I guess, and constantly poking, cutting, or scraping myself. I'll be a little more careful with 1st aid and watching for signs of problems.

bajabuddha - 8-12-2014 at 09:39 AM

On this note, hikers beware also, if you're climbing around limestone; a simple scrape or 'rock-rash' from limestones can quickly evolve into a nasty skin infection, same goes with corals. Years of river guiding, we'd get people that took a little tumble, and we'd debride 'em w/ peroxide and AAA on the spot. We'd get hikers that travelled north from hiking the Grand Canyon (oodles of limestones) and come north for a float trip; a minor scrape 3 days prior in The Big Ditch and unattended would sometimes end up jeopardizing a multi-day float due to rampant infection and need of medical evac off the river.

Ounce of prenvention worth a pound of cure.

Martyman - 8-12-2014 at 01:43 PM

The title of this thread gave me hope that I might see Pompanos famous "Thar she blows"

bledito - 8-12-2014 at 02:49 PM

rub some dirt in it to stop the bleeding and keep going was routine. not after reading this.