Infected cut

[JaimeAdams]

I had Mycobacteria marinum aka Fish Tank Granuloma. I got it from an eel bite at work. Everything was fine, I cleaned the bite and applied stuff, but a few days later it swelled up. My pcp didn't know what it was and tried various treatments until I went to a infectious disease doctor and had the infection surgically cut out and then was on antibiotics for probably 6 months after that. No fun at all.

 

[brandon429]

I hit like on that but it seemed mean. I liked the info relay and am shocked at the depth of care that needed. Has anyone heard of any instance of fw issues like this? Of course any body of water holds a microbiome different than we're used to, but the mean stuff seems marine always

giardiasis was possible in fw circumstances but again I never heard of any infections at all, and Ive inhaled the worst concentrate from a freshwater sandbed about a hundred times yuck. the worst is dead space siphon hose aquarium water, where last months siphon set in the warm garage 30d with a few ounces still in the middle undrained and that's forgotten upon inhale for new water change

 

[norfolkgarden]

As a medical professional, I would advise you to see your doctor as soon as you can or go to an acute care clinic. An aquarium forum isn't the best place to seek answers to medical questions like this. But I will say the chances that you're infected with something exotic from your reef are remote and a smaller cellulitis with purulent drainage, which yours looks to be, is more likely caused by Staph (particularly MRSA) or Strep. There's also a chance of Pseudomonas due to the water exposure, so I would inform them of that as they may pick a different antibiotic mix for you if they deem it relevant. I wouldn't self treat with amoxicillin as we don't commonly use that in cellulitis cases due to coverage issues and you also run the risk of selecting out a resistant organism.

Thank you for the professional input!

It is awesome to have a doctor that is also familiar with some of the bizarre poisons and diseases reefers can self-infict!

Part of the reason people do some of their preliminary investigation on the forum is because a lot of doctors have no idea some of the ridiculous stuff that we can come in contact with and as a lay person you have to help guide them in the right direction. Some of your more experienced fellow reefers can suggest symptoms that are most likely to be important and most likely to be overlooked by a regular physician.

It's similar to dealing with a newer physician who is not familiar with what a Wolf spider bite looks like in the early stages.
[emoji53]

 

[norfolkgarden]

Both of these are still on the back of my leg 3 months later. Picked them up middle of July on a jobsite.
Lol, yes, I was covered in Off and sunscreen. Long pants, etc.

Not Wolf spider (fortunately!). Just some unknown local species from the woods.
No real change in condition. I take pictures every few weeks. Just waiting patiently for them to heal.
[emoji4]

 

[North Borders]

I had Mycobacteria marinum aka Fish Tank Granuloma. I got it from an eel bite at work. Everything was fine, I cleaned the bite and applied stuff, but a few days later it swelled up. My pcp didn't know what it was and tried various treatments until I went to a infectious disease doctor and had the infection surgically cut out and then was on antibiotics for probably 6 months after that. No fun at all.

Mycobacterium marinum is the same family as tuberculosis and Mycobacterium avium. These infections are typically very hard to treat as they encapsulate themselves in tissue. They generally require LONG therapy courses of 6-12 months depending on where the infection is located at and usually with multiple antibiotics. This would be something an infectious disease specialist would diagnose and culture to determine the strain. Patients with compromised immune systems (think HIV or Cancer) will be more susceptible to these kinds of infections. With that said, in general, these types of infections are going to be RARE and would not be the first thing I would be empirically covering when looking at this wound. Now I'm not saying people can't and won't develop infections with these oddball bugs (you clearly did), it's just that the vast majority are going to be infected with something a little more common.

 

[Brando'sbow]

Thank you to everyone for all the feedback. I went to see a doctor today and he honestly didn’t seem to concerned although definitely recognized it was infected and needed treatment. The doc prescribed 800mg Bactrim just as Nem Host suspected he would I will post another pic in a few days if and when the medication has had time to take affect. Thanks again fellow reefers!

 

[North Borders]

Thank you to everyone for all the feedback. I went to see a doctor today and he honestly didn’t seem to concerned although definitely recognized it was infected and needed treatment. The doc prescribed 800mg Bactrim just as Nem Host suspected he would I will post another pic in a few days if and when the medication has had time to take affect. Thanks again fellow reefers!

That's a good empiric antibiotic pick

 

[vetteguy53081]

Hi everyone I was cleaning my aquarium on Sunday night and got a tiny cut which I didn’t even notice. Come Monday morning it was looking swollen red and painful. I saw a past post of this happening to someone resulting in a nasty infection. Going to go to the doctor tomorrow was simply hoping for any insight on type of infection/effective medications that might give the doctor some insight and direction in treating it. Here is a pic from 20 mins ago. Keep in mind there was no blood or noticeable pain when this happened.

From a murse- male nurse. . lol), this may be one for a dermatologist. Not everyone has proper insurance and if that is an issue, Wash well with NON-perfumed soap and clench your teeth (for stinging)while you apply Iodine or denatured alcohol. Next check for improvement on appearance of dermis. If it looks better, treat with Neosporin daily for a week. If not, Bite the bullet and go to a local walk-in clinic or your practioner for assessment.

 

[Colin Fowler]

Hi everyone I was cleaning my aquarium on Sunday night and got a tiny cut which I didn’t even notice. Come Monday morning it was looking swollen red and painful. I saw a past post of this happening to someone resulting in a nasty infection. Going to go to the doctor tomorrow was simply hoping for any insight on type of infection/effective medications that might give the doctor some insight and direction in treating it. Here is a pic from 20 mins ago. Keep in mind there was no blood or noticeable pain when this happened.

You need to go to a doctor ASAP.

 

[radiata]

I believe that Mycobacterium marinum is really tricky because it is a gram negative bacteria, and most antibiotics won't work on it. Once again --- see a doctor ASAP.

 

[Katrina71]

Most people are now colonized with MRSA and don't even know it. My entire family got it. A joy of working in law enforcement.

 

[norfolkgarden]

Most people are now colonized with MRSA and don't even know it. My entire family got it. A joy of working in law enforcement.

Yuc.

2 younger coworkers had MRSA years ago. They have had no issues since then.

Hmmmmmm, "alchohol compromised immunity"....

 

[Katrina71]

Yuc.

2 younger coworkers had MRSA years ago. They have had no issues since then.

Hmmmmmm, "alchohol compromised immunity"....

Ours was 3 years ago this month. I was shocked to learn how rampant it was.

 

[brandon429]

MRSA I might have to rate scarier than most, a very popular middle school teacher here in Lubbock, no health issues, simply caught some during a Florida vacation / intensive care weeks and weeks. Finally made it ok
Totally dangerous non marine associated bac we can get and spread off a wal mart door handle/random surfaces/ dang.

http://www.kcbd.com/story/26227990/family-of-frenship-math-teacher-raising-money-to-bring-her-home/

 

[Captain Quint]

...........Has no one else dealt with this reaction. With all the aquascaping and cleaning we participate in surely someone has had a similar circumstance.

Many more times than I'd like to admit.

Better safe than sorry.

I'm glad you got on cleaning the wound and antibiotics so quickly.

 

[MnFish1]

I hit like on that but it seemed mean. I liked the info relay and am shocked at the depth of care that needed. Has anyone heard of any instance of fw issues like this? Of course any body of water holds a microbiome different than we're used to, but the mean stuff seems marine always

giardiasis was possible in fw circumstances but again I never heard of any infections at all, and Ive inhaled the worst concentrate from a freshwater sandbed about a hundred times yuck. the worst is dead space siphon hose aquarium water, where last months siphon set in the warm garage 30d with a few ounces still in the middle undrained and that's forgotten upon inhale for new water change

Yes got a mycobacterium infection in my lungs. From a siphon. Inhaled a bunch of old water I didn’t realize was I side

 

[JaimeAdams]

Mycobacterium marinum is the same family as tuberculosis and Mycobacterium avium. These infections are typically very hard to treat as they encapsulate themselves in tissue. They generally require LONG therapy courses of 6-12 months depending on where the infection is located at and usually with multiple antibiotics. This would be something an infectious disease specialist would diagnose and culture to determine the strain. Patients with compromised immune systems (think HIV or Cancer) will be more susceptible to these kinds of infections. With that said, in general, these types of infections are going to be RARE and would not be the first thing I would be empirically covering when looking at this wound. Now I'm not saying people can't and won't develop infections with these oddball bugs (you clearly did), it's just that the vast majority are going to be infected with something a little more common.

Yes, sir, I am very well versed in Mycobacterium after having dealt with my hand for a year and a half from bite to finished treatment. I do agree that there are many more common infections that one can get from a reef tank than that.

Yes got a mycobacterium infection in my lungs. From a siphon. Inhaled a bunch of old water I didn’t realize was I side

That totally sucks, how were they able to determine that is what was going on?

 

[MnFish1]

I believe that Mycobacterium marinum is really tricky because it is a gram negative bacteria, and most antibiotics won't work on it. Once again --- see a doctor ASAP.

Mycobacteria are not gram negative. But it’s true that most antibiotics don’t work on it alone. It would be surprising if op had m marinium. Usually it takes some time to see the infection or more than a week.

 

[MnFish1]

Most people are now colonized with MRSA and don't even know it. My entire family got it. A joy of working in law enforcement.

In several areas of the country this was true 30 years ago. There are many different strains of staph some more virulent than others. MRSA is significant only because it’s resistant to commonly used antibiotics and thus becomes more severe because there is a treatment delay until the right antibiotics are used. The media has blown it a bit out of proportion

 

[Katrina71]

In several areas of the country this was true 30 years ago. There are many different strains of staph some more virulent than others. MRSA is significant only because it’s resistant to commonly used antibiotics and thus becomes more severe because there is a treatment delay until the right antibiotics are used. The media has blown it a bit out of proportion

I agree. Media made it the devil. I almost lost my eye. I got lucky.