Abstract
Seal biologists at Marion Island (Southern Ocean) are in frequent contact with seals. During research activities, biologists may be bitten by seals, yet no standardised protocol for treating such bites is in place. Information on 22 seal bite cases at Marion Island was collected. Treatment of these bites varied, reflecting a need for standardised protocols for the treatment of bites. Recommendations for the in-field treatment of bites are presented. Five of the 22 cases had some symptoms which resembled ‘seal finger’ – a zoonotic infection, usually of the hands, that is contracted after a person comes into contact with tissues of seals or is bitten by one. However, in four of these cases, symptoms subsided within 4 days without antibiotic treatment; in the fifth case antibiotics were administered and symptoms subsided in 4 days. There is little evidence of the occurrence of seal finger at Marion Island, but this deserves further investigation.
Highlights
The Prince Edward Islands (46°54’S, 37°45’E) – comprising Marion Island and the smaller Prince Edward Island – are situated in the southern Indian Ocean
The large variety of wound treatments administered indicates a need for standardised training of personnel
we recommend that marine mammal biologists
Summary
The Prince Edward Islands (46°54’S, 37°45’E) – comprising Marion Island and the smaller Prince Edward Island – are situated in the southern Indian Ocean. From 1993 to 2014, approximately 15 000 sub-Antarctic fur seal pups have been weighed (Oosthuizen et al 2016) and seal biologists regularly draw blood from fur seals. Seal biologists handle seal carcasses to perform necropsies or for osteological collections, and collect and process seal faeces Protective measures, such as wearing gloves, are seldom undertaken It is interesting that despite this there have been no reports of the zoonotic infection ‘seal finger’ from the island This infection of the hands is contracted after a person comes into contact with blood, blubber or other tissues of pinnipeds or is bitten by one (Tryland 2018). Most reports are from the northern hemisphere (e.g. Candolin 1953; Rodahl 1952; Waage 1950); in the southern hemisphere, only a small number of hand infections with clinical presentation similar to seal finger have been reported (Cawthorn 1994; Liavaag 1940; Panagis, Apps & Knight 1982)
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