Jellyfish Sting

• Sting from a jellyfish
• Jellyfish cause most of the stings that occur in sea water
• The creature's stingers inject venom into the human skin. This is what causes the symptoms.
• The main symptoms are pain, burning and redness at the sting site. Red lines are common.

Jellyfish Facts

• They are umbrella shaped, clear sea creatures with long trailing tentacles. They move slowly through the water by pulsing the upper body. Also carried by ocean currents. Their tentacles can be 10 feet or longer.
• Other Names. Jellies or sea jellies. Large groups of jellies are called a bloom. Blooms can close beaches.
• Where They Live. Found in every ocean and coastline.
• Numbers. Jellies have increased in numbers worldwide. Warmer ocean temps and pollution of ocean waters are factors. Fishing the ocean too much is also a cause. Tuna, shark and swordfish eat jellies.
• Stings can occur while wading, swimming or diving in salt water. Honolulu gets over 1000 911 calls per month for stings.
• Beached Jellies. Even beached or dying jellies can sting. So can pieces of tentacles floating in the water. They can release venom for up to 2 weeks.
• Prevention. Mainly do not go in the water where jellies are seen. Wearing a thin layer of clothing (such as pantyhose) also can protect you. Reason: the stingers are short and cannot puncture clothing. Special "stinger suits" can be bought in diving stores.

Cause of Sting Reactions

• The long tentacles have thousands of stingers.
• When a stinger is touched, it pierces the skin and injects venom.
• The venom is what causes all the symptoms.

Types of Jellyfish Sting Reactions

• Local Reactions are most common. Symptoms are raised, red lines that cross each other. The sting causes pain or burning at the site. Sometimes hives in the sting area occur. Blisters can occur in severe cases. Severe pain lasts 1-2 hours. Itching may last for a week. If the skin damage is severe, red or purple lines can last for weeks.
• General Reactions can occur if there are many stings. More stings give a higher dose of venom. Large venom symptoms are vomiting, dizziness, weakness and headache.
• Anaphylaxis (A severe allergic reaction). Life-threatening reactions are very rare with the stings. Most are caused by box jellyfish found in the South Pacific and Australia. The main symptoms are trouble breathing and swallowing, along with hives. It starts rapidly, most often within 20 minutes of the sting.

Call 911 Now

• Past severe allergic reaction to jellyfish stings (not just hives) and stung less than 2 hours ago
• Wheezing or trouble breathing
• Hoarseness, cough or tightness in the throat or chest
• Trouble swallowing or drooling
• Speech is slurred
• Acts or talks confused
• Passed out (fainted) or too weak to stand
• You think your child has a life-threatening emergency

Go to ER Now

• Hives or swelling all over the body (but normal breathing)
• Muscle cramps or spasms
• Sting inside the mouth
• Sting on the eye
• Stomach pain or vomiting

Call Doctor or Seek Care Now

• Sting covers a large area (more than 1 arm or leg)
• Fever and sting looks infected (spreading redness)
• Jellyfish sting and No past tetanus shots. Note: tetanus is the "T" in DTaP, TdaP, or Td vaccines.
• Severe pain not improved after 2 hours using care advice
• Your child looks or acts very sick
• You think your child needs to be seen, and the problem is urgent

Contact Doctor Within 24 Hours

• Blisters appear
• More than 48 hours since the sting and redness getting larger
• Last tetanus shot was more than 10 years ago
• You think your child needs to be seen, but the problem is not urgent

Contact Doctor During Office Hours

• Severe itching not better after 24 hours of using steroid cream
• Redness or rash lasts more than 48 hours
• You have other questions or concerns

Self Care at Home

• Jellyfish sting - Normal local reaction

Care Advice for Jellyfish Sting

What You Should Know About Jellyfish Stings:

• Jellyfish cause most of the stings that occur in the ocean.
• Jellyfish stings cause pain that feels like a bee sting.
• Here is some care advice that should help.

Remove Any Tentacles with Sea Water:

• Rinse the area with sea water. This will help remove any tentacles stuck to the skin.
• Do not rinse with fresh water (will trigger stingers).
• Do not scrub or rub area (will trigger stingers).
• Do not use your bare fingers. Reason: you will get stings on your hands.

Scrape the Area to Remove Small Stingers:

• Scrape off any stingers you can see. Use the edge of a credit card or butter knife.
• Stop scraping if this increases the pain.

Heat Therapy if Initial Pain is Severe:

• Apply heat to the painful area. Reason: hot water may break down the venom and relieve the pain.
• Place the painful part in a tub of hot water, if possible. For other areas, you can apply a hot washcloth.
• Water temperature: hot, but not above 104 F (40 C). This is the usual temperature of hot tubs. Caution: be careful to avoid skin burns.
• How long: use heat therapy for 10 to 20 minutes. Stop sooner if the pain improves.
• Caution: do not put hydrogen peroxide, alcohol or urine on the painful area. Reason: they do not help and can make it worse.

Pain Medicine:

• To help with the pain, give an acetaminophen product (such as Tylenol).
• Another choice is an ibuprofen product (such as Advil).
• Use as needed.

Steroid Cream for Itching:

• For itching or swelling, put 1% hydrocortisone cream (such as Cortaid) on the sting.
• No prescription is needed.
• Use 3 times per day until itching stops.

What to Expect:

• Severe burning pain will lessen within a few hours.
• Itching may last for a week.
• Red lines from the tentacles may last 1-2 weeks.

Call Your Doctor If:

• Blisters appear
• Severe pain lasts over 2 hours
• Sting looks infected (spreading redness or pus)
• You think your child needs to be seen
• Your child becomes worse

Care Advice for Jellyfish Sting

This shows a jellyfish sting reaction. The sting will cause pain and swelling where the tentacles of the jellyfish touched the skin. The rash is red and swollen.