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River Mung?
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dhanson928



Joined: 12 Mar 2012
Posts: 99

PostPosted: Sun Jun 22, 2014 12:12 pm    Post subject: River Mung? Reply with quote

Does anyone else get bad stuff from the river water like I seem to do? I'm in the water about 4 times a week and it seems like every cut and scratch I have gets infected and stays infected. Just curious
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biffmalibu



Joined: 30 May 2008
Posts: 556

PostPosted: Sun Jun 22, 2014 3:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

YES.

Think about the springtime river and what goes into it. All the stuff that has been accumulating on the snow and ice. Springtime pollen explosion, running off into the river. Poop from all critters (humans included), concentrated by snow melt. The river is very long and dirty. And there is virtually everything in it. Repeatedly blowing out your nostrils and hwarking up what's in the bottom of your throat is good personal health policy.

I would say the biggest ONGOING/chronic infectious threat from the river is staph aureus. Shower after every day. Don't be macho or apathetic; stomp your wetsuit in the sudsy shower water after every day! Dry it in sunshine/UV to help sterilize it. Every week (or after several days of shredding), wash/soak in light bleach water. Your wetsuit could be a universe of bacteria, constantly rubbing into your hair follicles and cuts where it loves to multiply. Infecting yourself via wetsuit or towel is easy.

Don't be a tough-guy. Bacteria can win no matter how tough you are! If you see unusual yellow "pimples" on your thighs or other high-rub areas, that is likely staph aureus getting started on a boil and you need to improve your hygiene practices (in addition to cleaning out those pimples with soapy water). Also, change your bath towel every day or perhaps every other day. Line drying outside is also good policy thanks to UV.
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Sun Jun 22, 2014 4:41 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

biffmalibu wrote:
Shower after every day. Don't be macho or apathetic; stomp your wetsuit in the sudsy shower water after every day!

Or do as we had to do not only "back in the day" of living in vans and pickups but last week at Roosevelt: sail every day for a week between showers because there ain't any. Ya quickly learn to face upwind of yourself, stand upwind of everyone else, and look forward to getting home and take two showers back to back just to catch up.

I've never noticed a cut healing issue. All I've noticed in all these decades are eye and ear infections from Jones Beach and river nose from sinus shots anywhere. Avoiding Jones Beach solves the former problem and nasal lavage solves the latter, for me.
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CUSalin



Joined: 11 Mar 2001
Posts: 405
Location: Hood River, OR

PostPosted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 3:09 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Biff is right. Twice I've been infected by Staphylococcus aureus, presumably from river. Most recently in my foot, diagnosed as cellulitis - see photo) and learned a friend recently got the same but even more severe.

A few years ago I became infected on my hand and didn't see the doc as quick which resulted in a severe rheumatic reaction which still haunts me today. Doc said, "back in the day they would have amputated" or I "...would have died." So, take that shit seriously. Don't mess around and get to the doc if you're symptomatic!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staphylococcus_aureus

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellulitis



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starfish



Joined: 14 Apr 1996
Posts: 202

PostPosted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 4:32 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hey you should post a warning before showing that TOE picture. It looked a lot worse than my foot. Oh by the way it blew pretty good last night at Rowena.
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surfersteve



Joined: 24 Apr 2007
Posts: 203

PostPosted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 10:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I am not sure what it is the water, but maybe the carbon in the coal is acting as a natural filter. I never have problems with cuts and hardly think about it. I did have at least 8 plantar warts a few years back that did not respond to liquid nitrogen, compound W, or special scalpel tools. I sailed at least 50 days that year and every one of them disappeared never to return.
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beaglebuddy



Joined: 10 Feb 2012
Posts: 1120

PostPosted: Fri Jun 27, 2014 3:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

We get this in Hawaii from brown water with an open cut or nick, at least you don't have leptosporosis. The alcoholics get it real bad because the medicine doesn't work when you drink. Skin gets thinner as you get older and it becomes so easy to get little nicks.
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WMP



Joined: 30 May 2000
Posts: 671

PostPosted: Fri Jun 27, 2014 9:49 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I recently got a big slice in the finger from my harness sailing on "Phat Tuesday". Blood all over my 3.2 sail before I realized me body was leaking. I refused to stop sailing, just wrapped it with electrical tape. When I got home I soaked it in salt water and then gave it some tea tree oil. Next day sprayed a layer of "New Skin" and wrapped it again before sailing for a few hours. Sailed several times since in very powerful conditions, not a problem. The tea tree oil did the trick.... the finger is as good as new now with absolutely no infection in the process of healing.
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merriam



Joined: 28 Apr 2008
Posts: 95

PostPosted: Sun Jun 29, 2014 2:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

CUSalin wrote:
Biff is right. Twice I've been infected by Staphylococcus aureus, presumably from river. Most recently in my foot, diagnosed as cellulitis - see photo) and learned a friend recently got the same but even more severe


I read your citation and couldn't find anything to suggest contamination by water. Your cause and effect assumption may not be accurate.

"Spread of S. aureus (including MRSA) generally is through human-to-human contact, although recently some veterinarians have discovered the infection can be spread through pets,[46] with environmental contamination thought to play a relatively unimportant part."
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CUSalin



Joined: 11 Mar 2001
Posts: 405
Location: Hood River, OR

PostPosted: Mon Jun 30, 2014 10:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

merriam wrote:
CUSalin wrote:
Biff is right. Twice I've been infected by Staphylococcus aureus, presumably from river. Most recently in my foot, diagnosed as cellulitis - see photo) and learned a friend recently got the same but even more severe


I read your citation and couldn't find anything to suggest contamination by water. Your cause and effect assumption may not be accurate.

"Spread of S. aureus (including MRSA) generally is through human-to-human contact, although recently some veterinarians have discovered the infection can be spread through pets,[46] with environmental contamination thought to play a relatively unimportant part."


Merriam.. respectfully - you need to do more homework. See ("reservoirs for the agent") http://books.google.com/books?id=GXAufRLFJtEC&pg=PA149&lpg=PA149&dq=waterborne+Staphylococcus+aureus&source=bl&ots=6UaupTH05-&sig=IMN2-F41ZOaVuB5fP0g8KW_otNY&hl=en&sa=X&ei=ioGxU7q9G8qKuASJxYDwBw&ved=0CCQQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=waterborne%20Staphylococcus%20aureus&f=false and many other supporting articles.

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