Please read this

[Ian086]

Hi Guys/Gals. I have read a couple of threads about this and just thought I'd post this. I was watching the TV show "Monsters Inside Me" tonight and it had a story about a young girl in the US who contracted an infection. It concerns ALL of us. It's an infection that can be contracted from our fish/aquariums. It is extremely rare but still, I think we all should now about it. It's called Mycobacterium marinum. It starts off a skin liaison(s) and can be very destructive to skin tissue and muscle and works it's way into the bone, which may require amputation. Now I am not trying to scare anyone, I just think we should all be aware of it. A simple skin test can detect it and it is relatively easy to treat with antibiotics. Because it's so rare, only 200 cases in the US since 1996, it is not commonly checked for by doctors. The most common way of catching it is putting your hand/arm in an aquarium with an open wound. If you think you may have it, get medical treatment straight away and don't rub your eyes. It can cause blindness. It is worth us all knowing about this, as we can ask the doc to check for it!!!....Mods/Admin, this maybe worth making into a sticky??. Feel free to edit if needed....Ian
Here is a link to Wiki about it......
Mycobacterium marinum - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[herp_mommy]

That show is so disgusting I can't watch it. But you bring up a good point.

-Nobody should be working out their aquariums with open wounds. I have large reptiles myself- so I always get scratched up.

-Wait until your wounds close to stick your hands in the water.

-Always wash your arms and hands with soap and hot water after you're done in the tank.

 

[Ian086]

That show is so disgusting I can't watch it. But you bring up a good point.

-Nobody should be working out their aquariums with open wounds. I have large reptiles myself- so I always get scratched up.

-Wait until your wounds close to stick your hands in the water.

-Always wash your arms and hands with soap and hot water after you're done in the tank.

Yeah I have a weird taste in TV show but even I don't usually watch it. It just happened to be on while I was browsing AA and remembered a fellow member asking about getting sick from her tank.....

 

[Delapool]

Yes, always good to be careful. I know when I'm rushing a pwc sometimes I have to remind myself to slow down - it never gets done any quicker

 

[Coursair]

Wear gloves if you have a wound. Wash well afterwards. Use tools if possible.

I got an unknown infection from a lizard scratch. The rare diseases Dr said it was "cool" because he had NO IDEA what it was. Luckily we finally got it controlled. My hand looked purple.

I'd had Reptiles for 30 years and that was my only incident. So I don't want to scare anyone either.
Just be aware and clean up well and don't wait if you need to see a Dr. Mine got bad because my work was being slow to let me see a Dr. I'm fine, no damage now. But it was a wake up call !!


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[captaincritical]

That shows scares the living daylights out of me but I still watch it on a regular basis. Ah, the mentality of a germaphobe. Keep in mind that tons of people come in contact with the parasites and bacteria on that show on a regular basis and are perfectly healthy.

Just invest in a pair of shoulder-high gloves and wash your hands regularly, especially if your immune system is compromised for any reason.