Crown of Thorns Starfish Sting

Like most starfish and sea urchins the crown-of-thorns packs a particularly potent venom from its puncture wound poison injury.

The thorns are sharp enough and sufficiently stout to pierce even a relatively thick wetsuit.

The toxin released from a crown-of-thorns spine envenomation may cause nausea, vomiting, significant stinging pain, and paralysis in rare cases.

Crown of Thorns Sting Symptoms

• Immediate and often severe pain
• Significant bleeding and swelling at the injury site
• Numbness, headaches, weakness, tingling
• Nausea, vomiting, joint aches, coughing

Note: Symptoms usually persist from 30 minutes to 3 hours before resolving.

Crown of Thorns Sting Treatment

• Immerse the affected area in water as hot as the person can tolerate for 30 to 90 minutes
• Repeat as necessary to control pain (water temperature should not exceed 140 F or 60 C)
• Some stings may require an injected local anesthetic for pain relief
• Use tweezers to remove any spines in the wound because symptoms may not resolve until all spines have been removed
• Occasionally the spines may remain in the wound and will require a health care professional to remove them
• Scrub the wound with soap and water followed by extensive rinsing with fresh water
• Do not cover the wound with tape or any other type of occlusive dressing as it may increase the risk of an infection
• A tetanus booster is often recommended for patients with these types of wounds
• Apply hydrocortisone cream 2 to 3 times daily as needed for itching
• Discontinue immediately if any signs of infection appear
• Oral antibiotics are usually recommended to treat an infection

These guidelines are recommended in treating a crown-of-thorns puncture wound when medical attention is not immediately available.

Hazardous Injuries |> Fish Spine Injury |> Sea Snake Bite |> Jellyfish Stings |> Octopus Bites |> Cone Shell Snail Sting |

Divers also enjoyed reading about...