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 Portuguese man o wars

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borntofli
maddsurf82
The Boy Nags
8 posters
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The Boy Nags




Number of posts : 5
Registration date : 2007-11-21

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PostSubject: Portuguese man o wars   Portuguese man o wars EmptyWed Nov 21, 2007 9:52 am

Hi,
As a newbie to the forum I would just like to thank all those who work hard to keep us updated on the surf conditions. It really does make life much easier to be able to sit pretending to work, and plan our surfing based on good information.
The question I have is about Portuguese man o wars.
I was surfing earlier this week at the Horace cadwell pier and got a nasty sting on the leg, I turned round and saw the little blue floating ballon Ignoring the initial effects I carried on surfin till my whole leg went into very painful cramps at which point I paddled in and hobbled homeward. I then covered the leg in vinegar and took some pills. Later I read on the web that vinegar works for most jellyfish but not Portuguese man o wars, what I was wondering was whether what other people do to treat these stings or more importantly is there anyway to avoid them, or conditions that make the jelly fish particularly numerous?

Any advice/help gratefully accepted
Cheers
Nags
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maddsurf82

maddsurf82


Number of posts : 113
Age : 41
Localisation : san antonio,texas
Registration date : 2007-08-14

Portuguese man o wars Empty
PostSubject: Re: Portuguese man o wars   Portuguese man o wars EmptyThu Nov 22, 2007 4:22 am

thats what that sting was on my ankle omg i hope your ok i still have the ring on my ankle actually two of them but um im sure there is a cream ya can put on it try the local surf shops around town peace dude
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borntofli




Number of posts : 44
Localisation : Port A
Registration date : 2007-07-03

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PostSubject: Re: Portuguese man o wars   Portuguese man o wars EmptyThu Nov 22, 2007 4:33 am

This time of year its a good idea to start wearing a thin wetsuit to protect you.
Dont let the blue dudes get you down...
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maddsurf82

maddsurf82


Number of posts : 113
Age : 41
Localisation : san antonio,texas
Registration date : 2007-08-14

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PostSubject: Re: Portuguese man o wars   Portuguese man o wars EmptyThu Nov 22, 2007 5:07 am

no doubt i was actually wearing a full suit but some how got my ankle twice dude i wounder if anyone has got stun in the junk darm lol that would hurt what ya think about fri ya think its going to be fun im sure the current is going to be strong i went out for like 5 hours on thurs last week and caught some waves but man that current was very hardcore hope ya get some waves today dude
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PORT A SURF COMPANY




Number of posts : 1658
Registration date : 2007-03-29

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PostSubject: things that may help   Portuguese man o wars EmptyThu Nov 22, 2007 5:15 am

Some say use aloe vera jel.

Some say use adolfs meat tenderizer.

Some say urine,,yes urine.
And I have heard from a pro that urine does chemicaly help, though I have tried it.

Back in 76 or 77 I was @ south padre island and I had both legs wrapped in tenticles from ankles to knees... I was miserable for a few hours...

Borntofli has a good recommendation.
Wetsuit for now.
As to what brings them in, I don't know,I am sure the U.T. Science center here in pot a. Could tell you.
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haoleboy

haoleboy


Number of posts : 6
Localisation : Corpus Christi
Registration date : 2007-10-18

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PostSubject: Re: Portuguese man o wars   Portuguese man o wars EmptyThu Nov 22, 2007 6:15 am

The best thing to do is to look carefully for them while you are in the water and try to avoid them. Seriously. They're easier to avoid than jellyfish which will come up under you to sting you. At least Man-o-war float and are more visible. But keep in mind the tentacles can be pretty long so give them a lot of elbow room. Not anything you can do about floating tentacles.

But I've been raked across the face by one while duckdiving and yes, I've been stung in "the junk" multiple times. As long as you're not allergic you'll survive. I've seen an allergic reaction before and it was not pretty In that case go straight to the hospital.

When you get stung by any jellyfish do not rub the area. Rubbing will make it worse.

Quote :
According to a study done by Dr. Geoffrey Isbister of Newcastle, Australia's Mater Hospital between 2003 and 2005, the best treatment for a sting is to apply hot water to the affected area. Hot water used in the study was fixed at 45 degrees Celsius (113 Fahrenheit). The hot water eases the pain of a sting by denaturing the toxins.[2]

Applying ice to the area of the sting is also a fairly effective way to suppress the pain. Ice works by making the toxins less active and reduces the sensation and therefore pain of the area of skin around the ice. Additionally, ice constricts blood vessels, reducing the speed at which the venom travels to other parts of the body, including the brain; heat has an opposite effect. It was originally thought that applying ice was the best way of dealing with Man O' War stings before the study was conducted. Lifesavers around the world still use ice to treat the stings of this species.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portuguese_Man_o'_War

Quote :
1. Rinse the area liberally with seawater or fresh water to remove any tentacles stuck to the skin. This can be from a spray bottle or in a beach shower. Do not apply vinegar. A study shows that vinegar in these stings sometimes makes the sting worse. (Portuguese man-of-wars belong to a different family than box jellyfish [Carybdea alata] and therefore must be treated separately.)

2. For severe pain, try applying heat or cold, whichever feels better to the victim.

3. Few Portuguese man-of-war stings in Hawai`i cause life-threatening reactions, but this is always a possibility. Some people are extremely sensitive to the venom; a few have allergic reactions. Consider even the slightest breathing difficulty, or altered level of consciousness, a medical emergency. Call for help and use automatic epinephrine injector if available.

http://www.aloha.com/~lifeguards/portugue.html

Quote :
First aid for most jellyfish stings is to pour large amounts of vinegar over the affected area. This prevents any undischarged nematocysts (stinging cells) on the tentacles from firing more venom into the victim. Vinegar does not decrease pain or diminish the effects of the venom. Vinegar is not recommended for bluebottle (Portuguese man-o'-war) stings and may have little effect on irukandji stings. Bluebottle, irukandji, box jellyfish and Chiropsalmus quadrigata, stings have specific treatments recommended.

...

Bluebottle or Portuguese man-o'-war (Physalia sp.)
First aid consists of removal of the tentacles, preferably with forceps. Vinegar is not recommended. Analgesia may be required, although most stings respond to ice packs and/or topical anaesthetic agents.

http://www.avru.org/compendium/biogs/A000071b.htm
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The Boy Nags




Number of posts : 5
Registration date : 2007-11-21

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PostSubject: Re: Portuguese man o wars   Portuguese man o wars EmptyFri Nov 23, 2007 7:32 am

Cheers for all the advice, looks like its time to dig the wetsuit out of the back of the cupboard and see if I can still squeeze myself into it.

Thanks
Nags (Happy holidays)
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Joe P

Joe P


Number of posts : 144
Age : 33
Localisation : Rockport
Registration date : 2007-05-29

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PostSubject: Re: Portuguese man o wars   Portuguese man o wars EmptySat Nov 24, 2007 11:06 am

Meat tenderizer is what i always used on man o war.

And yes urine does work. Its got something to do with the acids nuetralizing the sting or something.
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gypsyseagod

gypsyseagod


Number of posts : 69
Age : 55
Registration date : 2007-05-13

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PostSubject: Re: Portuguese man o wars   Portuguese man o wars EmptySun Nov 25, 2007 7:43 am

what he said. adolphus meat tenderizer works best.also,it's the ammonia in urine that neutralizes the sting- plain ammonia works too.
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Rusty

Rusty


Number of posts : 52
Registration date : 2007-04-12

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PostSubject: Re: Portuguese man o wars   Portuguese man o wars EmptySun Nov 25, 2007 6:54 pm

Back in August my son got tagged by a stingray on his heel. He started to feel serious pain that shot straight to his groin (the venom basically hit his lymph node). We went over to the lifeguard station and the lifeguard gave us some really great advice while treating my son. He said to keep a heat pack handy in the event you ever get stung by a stingray or a man-o-war because the heat neutralizes the toxins and makes them dissipate. Once he had a heat pack on my son's heel he told us to go back to the house and soak his heel in the hottest water he can stand. We did that and the pain went away within the hour. The lifeguard stated that the stings of most of the sea animals on the Gulf Coast can be treated in this manner because their toxins are all protein based. To all this information all I can say is thank God for our lifeguards and their training.
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