Have you ever been on a dive where you accidentally placed your hand on a sea urchin? Here is how to treat a sting given by a sea urchin.


Steps

1. Remove the spines that you receive from the urchin. It will hurt, but it is necessary in order for it to start the healing process. It is imperative that you take them out fast in order to reduce the pain and get most of the spine out.
2. Cover the affected area with vinegar once you get out of the water. Soak a lint-free towel in vinegar and hold it on there as long as possible.
3. Soak it in hot water for as hot as you can tolerate. It will ease the pain and help to relieve soreness on the following day. Put vinegar on it again.
4. When you go to bed, wrap the area that was stung with a lint-free towel, soaked in vinegar. Wrap the towel in plastic wrap and tape it so it stays on through the night.
5. Only 10 or less sea urchins are poisonous but there are a few deadly ones.
6. Good advice; but, being from Hawai'i where stepping on sea urchins ('wana) is common, I've found that a quick soak in undiluted white vinegar will do the trick quickly - no need to muck about with towels and the like unless the spines are in an area that make soaking problematic. Simply pour some vinegar into a suitable container and place the affected foot/hand/elbow/body part in the vinegar for as long as you can - I've actually watched spines "dissolve" as a foot soaked in vinegar from obvious spine, to black pinpoint discoloration, to nothing. A good wash with some anti-bacterial soap and/or an application of antibiotic cream or ointment to the area after soaking is a good idea as well. As always, keep an eye on the site of injury for a few dayd after the incident to make sure no infection sets in.

Tips

• You will not get the entire spine out, no matter how much you try. Do not dig into the skin with a pin or any type of needle. You can continue your dive because it will not need treatment immediately.
• The sting will hurt, but in the majority of cases, it is not necessary to seek medical attention! In some cases you may not even be able to bend your joint, if you were stung in that area. However, if you feel as though it is necessary, then do seek attention.
• Sea urchins inject a small amount of venom when stinging, but the amount is negligible to cause any serious injury if you are only stung by one urchin.
• The more you keep vinegar on the area that was stung the better off you will be.
• The best thing to do is to pee on the wounded area. It works better than vinegar.
• The spines in your skin will dissolve on their own. Do not dig at them to get them out.
• The spines are mostly calcium so a supplement of Vitamin D will help the body absorb the spines faster.
• You may experience dark discoloration immediately after the sting from the dissolving spine which should return to normal as your body absorbs the urchin.

Warnings

• Seek medical attention if the area becomes infected.