Thread: I stepped on a stingray and my foot looks like a red grapefruit

Originally Posted by splat

Yeah, Hawaiian word for urchins is wana. I don't think Schalphs sting sounds all that rare if 41 people a day are getting stung at one beach.
Unless you meant in terms of severity.

Sounds like it's time for a good old-fashioned poultice to pull the rest of that shit out and close 'er up, Schralph.

Rare in terms of severity/duration and what he's having to deal with. Stings are non-stop here in SD once the water gets warm, the guy directly in front of me yesterday walking up the bluff had just been stung. It's pretty safe to say that if it's summer time and sunny in SD, someone is getting stung that day.

thanks for the concern, ortho and old goat.

Had a (hopefully) final meeting with the doctor today. Talked to her about the little bits of grit, which in retrospect seem more likely to have been small bits of blood-covered sand, than broken pieces of barb teeth. Either way I made it a point to tell her about the grit, what it could have been, and possibility of foreign bodies. I asked about concern for abcess and she didn't think there was an abcess present, or enough evidence to justify an xray. The appearance, swelling and sensitivity/tenderness of the area have improved dramatically over the last few days. I would figure that if there were still foreign bodies in there, that it would still be pretty sensitive/tender and swollen with pus?

As long as you keep getting better no harm in waiting, but at the first sign of getting worse after the antibiotics are stopped reread orthoski's and my advice. And sand in the wound isn't so great either, but as long as it comes out on it's own it's ok. Fishing around in a foot for small foreign bodies is painful, difficult, and frustrating. Hard on the patient too.

Are all foot docs like dermatologists? Next appt. with the local podiatry specialist is 8/16!

I survived 18 miles of backpacking this weekend with no color changes, swelling, or pain, but there are still some long term sensitivity effects 3.5 weeks out. I'm worried about nerve or muscle damage.

Good luck man, I hope it turns out for the best. I thought about your situation the other day. I caught a wave to the inside and jumped off my board feet first onto the sand bar, I didn't do it again after remembering your situation and thinking how lucky I was

thanks piggity.

I did end up seeing foot doc. Nothing showed up in x-rays (my fucking body has been xrayed about 25+ times in the last 3 years). I've been backpacking, climbing, and singletrack riding on my toe the last 2 weeks with no resumed swelling, and my foot is finally fitting back into my climbing shoes.

My toe is finally nearing "normal" sensation 5 weeks out, but still isn't completely back to normal. The scar tissue from the puncture wound has been irritating my nerve, which, thankfully wasn't actually severed by the barb.

What a wonky kind of thing, considering how many people get stung with no real complications. Seems like it isn't all that hard for all kinds of complications, based on my experience. I mean, you have a bacteria laden stingray skin that contacts the cut, pieces of stingray bone that can break off, and razor sharp tissue/muscle/nerve cutting teeth.