OUCH! Have you ever been injured while reefing?

C-Reefer · May 17, 2019

I have never been stung our hurt other then small cuts and nicks from working with live rock, scrubbing sumps, etc. However, I was working at my LFS moving hammer frags from one rack to a rack beside it, and all of a sudden when I reach down to grab a frag, my pinkie finger suddenly exploded in pain. It felt like I'd been stung by a wasp. I jerked away, and looked but there was nothing on my finger, no marks of anything. I went and rinsed my hand in the sink, and after a few minutes the pain died down.

I didn't think about it or feel it for the rest of the day until I went to drive home. My finger started aching and hurting again and it was very swollen and red and there was a gouge taken out of it. I couldn't bend it without pain. I was baffled! Where had the gouge come from? I know I didn't do anything else to hurt my finger that day. That night was painful until I took ibuprofen and this morning it was still red and swollen and hurting. Hydrocortisone cream and some ibuprofen took most of the pain away but it looks like the gouge is deeper. It has a very wierd "scab" as it's not like a normal scab. It's very soft and an odd color. If it's not better in a few days I'm going to go to the doctor. I've asked some reefing friends and none have anything like this happen before. Does anyone have any idea what might have happened? FYI I checked and there were no bristle worms, vermetid snails, sharp skeletons, etc. I have a friend who gets stung all the time by LPS but they're like tiny mosquito bites, nothing like this.

Anyways, I was curious how many people have been injured and how severly while reefing. Share a picture if you can, and describe what happened!

Crabs McJones · May 17, 2019

Knock on wood the worse that's happened to me was getting a good bite from my female clownfish. Didn't leave a mark or bleed but still makes you jump when they chomp at you lol

Daniel@R2R · May 17, 2019

I got zapped by a euphyllia coral. It HURT!! One of the worst stings I've ever had in this hobby. I know it's not the norm, but it definitely happens.

afuel · May 17, 2019

I stuck my arm in the tank up to my elbow once when the water was live due to a failed heater didn’t really feel so great. I’ve been shocked countless times in my life working around live circuits in difficult locations. I have more lives than your average cat. I won’t even bring up my days on motorcycles

jgvergo · May 17, 2019

I was stuck by my black spiny sea urchin. It broke off and was under the skin on my hand. That was not fun.

lagatbezan · May 17, 2019

I was working in my sump and must have brushed up against a Bristle worm. felt a sharp sting in my finger like I got stabbed with a sharp glass or something. washed my hands, didn't see or notice anything. soon after the pain got worst and worst! finger was swollen and had puss build up in it. took over a week for it to heal. now I always wear gloves whenever I work in my tank or do any maintenance in the sump. I use the thick yellow dishwasher ones or latex ones.

revhtree · May 17, 2019

Yes fingers!!

Js.Aqua.Project · May 17, 2019

This happening while moving my sump:

Led to me taking off the tips of my fingers:

When we had the floors of our house redone (carpet>tile) I turned the end of my finger into a flap:

And this is why I can't have nice things...

Peace River · May 17, 2019

I was “stung” by a freshwater madtom catfish that felt like a paper wasp sting complete with the swelling, shooting pain, etc.

ChiSox Rabbitfish · May 17, 2019

My cleaner shrimp climbs up my hand and arm every time I have to go in there he tends to always find an old scratch or cut and picks at it it hurts a little

Dale_M · May 17, 2019

The only injury so far is a beaten up wallet

Hemmdog · May 17, 2019

Somehow my first few months of reefing I would cut myself constantly in the tank; so often I’d even say I dosed that tank 10ml of O- daily! Lol

sharpimage · May 17, 2019

That looks like a brown recluse spider bite. Be very careful with that. If it swells up more go to the ER. They can make you loose the finger. You would never had felt it bite.

sfin52 · May 17, 2019

sharpimage said:
That looks like a brown recluse spider bite. Be very careful with that. If it swells up more go to the ER. They can make you loose the finger. You would never had felt it bite.

Possible but very unlikely. I would go to a prompt care just to be safe. Thats a nasty wound and all kinds of bacteria live in tank. Loads of bugs can do that to wounds.

smartwater101 · May 17, 2019

1st thing: Poisoned myself and my dog with ploytoxin awhile back. Long story short: Had a tank crash a month before. Everything died. Finally got around to pulling out hair algea. Little did I know, the gooey base of the poly colony(and a couple small polyps) had actually survive and was part of what I had been pulling up. I dumped the bucket of gunk into the tub and used the shower-head to wash it down the drain.

Steamy poisonous air :/

Sooo hard to breath. Rushed dog to emergency vet before I went to emergency room. Anyway, other than the breathing issue and dealing with one of the dumbest vets in the world... both the dog and I are fine. You can read the details here: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2677756

2nd thing: I've been stung by my anemone a few times. never a big deal (feels like a sunburn) but one time, while cleaning, it got me really good. I had blisters up and down my forearm for quite awhile.

Thing is almost 1.5' across nowadays.

MnFish1 · May 17, 2019

I was trying to reach under the left plate of coral to get something off the sand. My arm was pierced just a pinprick - with something sharp. Within an hour it was red - blistered. Within 3 hours it was the size of a golf ball. I happened to have some antibiotics - and after talking to the doctor took them. the next day - the size of a softball - redness wise (diameter). I saw an infectious disease specialist sure I had vibrio or something terrible - he said 'its probably staph or strep' - he gave me doxycycline and augmentin - took 3 weeks but cleared up. At the end a sliver of calcium - the size of pin 'popped out'. I always vowed to wear gloves since then - but I dont....

Schnizzle · May 17, 2019

I guess I'm pretty fortunate so far. I usually just scrape my knuckles cleaning GHA off the rocks. Cleaner Shrimp loves picking at me too but that feels good. Maybe I'm weird. haha

MaddyP · May 17, 2019

C-Reefer said:
I have never been stung our hurt other then small cuts and nicks from working with live rock, scrubbing sumps, etc. However, I was working at my LFS moving hammer frags from one rack to a rack beside it, and all of a sudden when I reach down to grab a frag, my pinkie finger suddenly exploded in pain. It felt like I'd been stung by a wasp. I jerked away, and looked but there was nothing on my finger, no marks of anything. I went and rinsed my hand in the sink, and after a few minutes the pain died down.

I didn't think about it or feel it for the rest of the day until I went to drive home. My finger started aching and hurting again and it was very swollen and red and there was a gouge taken out of it. I couldn't bend it without pain. I was baffled! Where had the gouge come from? I know I didn't do anything else to hurt my finger that day. That night was painful until I took ibuprofen and this morning it was still red and swollen and hurting. Hydrocortisone cream and some ibuprofen took most of the pain away but it looks like the gouge is deeper. It has a very wierd "scab" as it's not like a normal scab. It's very soft and an odd color. If it's not better in a few days I'm going to go to the doctor. I've asked some reefing friends and none have anything like this happen before. Does anyone have any idea what might have happened? FYI I checked and there were no bristle worms, vermetid snails, sharp skeletons, etc. I have a friend who gets stung all the time by LPS but they're like tiny mosquito bites, nothing like this.

Anyways, I was curious how many people have been injured and how severly while reefing. Share a picture if you can, and describe what happened!

Looks to me like you were stung by something with hemotoxic venom considering the "dissolved" tissue. With the immediate sting you probably wouldn't notice anything, but as the venom starts dissolving the flesh pain and missing tissue would be noticeable. If the "gouge" continues to grow you might want to see a doctor.

No major injuries on my end, but I've had a few close calls!

saltyhog · May 17, 2019

62% yes?! Who knew reefing was a contact sport!

I guess I define injury a little differently.....something requiring medical attention, missing work, etc. No injuries in this hobby but I did fall 18' while trying to hang a deer stand and had a comminuted fracture of my left ulna. Only hobby injury unless you count fish hooks x 3.