CASE REPORT article
Front. Med.
Sec. Infectious Diseases: Pathogenesis and Therapy
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2025.1593819
Early Diagnosis and Aggressive Intervention in Vibrio vulnificus Infection Following Live Fish Dorsal Fin Puncture: A Case Report
Provisionally accepted
- 1Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
- 2Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
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In this paper, we report a case of traumatic wound infection caused by dorsal fin puncture of live fish. A 69-year-old woman developed progressive swelling of her right pinky finger after being stabbed by the dorsal fin of a live fish. The infection was confirmed by bacterial culture as a Vibrio vulnificus infection of a traumatic wound. The patient underwent antibiotic treatment, surgical decompression, debridement, and excision of necrotic tissue. Finally, the right pinkie finger was amputated due to dry gangrene. Early intervention and combined antibiotic therapy led to a good prognosis. As global ocean temperatures rise, the infection rate of this bacterium increases, and vigilance is needed. Clinical practice suggests that such infections should be considered in patients with a history of contact with seafood or seawater; Early diagnosis, active antibiotic therapy and necessary surgical intervention are the keys to improving the prognosis.
Keywords: Vibrio vulnificus, Stab wound, wound infections, Early Intervention, fish
Received: 02 Apr 2025; Accepted: 03 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Zhang, Chen, Feng, Chen and Yin. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Delong Yin, Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
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