Unhealthy Rockfish

[ronaultmtd]

When I cleaned the Stripers I caught at SJC, I noticed near the tail of one a strange lesion- the fish seemed thin, too- not fleshed out, fat and healthy- I looked up the condition on line- Wow! it could be a serious one that could transmit a dangerous bacterial infection to humans- unfortunately by this time all the filets were skinless and mixed in a ziplock plastic bag- to be on the safe side I tossed them. I washed my hands afterwards with warm, soapy water.

I had a skin prick on my right thumb that was bleeding from the rockfish fin, not sure which one gave it to me handling them in the boat, but now I am somewhat concerned about that- So what are we to do? Used the gloves that are metal mesh?

[tufnik]

What were the conditions you looked up? What are the risks we should be concerned about?

How do we decide on the yak whether to keep the fish?

[Shady]

Was the condition Mycobacteriosis? Sadly, I think something like 50-60% of all the Rockfish in the Bay have this.

I've heard that this condition can effect people, but only in rare cases is it serious. If you freeze your filets and properly cook them, you will kill the bacterium. Not that I would want to, but I believe that you can even eat, with no ill effect, the fish that are covered in sores if the meat if frozen and then properly cooked.

The tough point is if you don't want to run the risk of contact with diseased fish, you probably shouldnt fish... However, you can wear gloves to prevent being poked by the fish's fins.

[ronaultmtd]

Yeah, but the fisheries folks do not recommend eating the fish with lesions and handling them can transmit the organism to humans, especially if you have a cut of wipe your face with your hands. The eyes are especially an easy access for transmission.

[DOGFISH]

No disrespect to anyone, but what do you expect when we are fishing in a sewer. When there are poor water conditions and there is a lack of food, such as menhaden, fish become stressed and disease sets in. The Chesapeake is in serious trouble. It is sad to see.

If I were to wear gloves, I like the bright colored Lindy gloves. I have thought about gloves to avoid being stuck by the treble hooks on crankbaits. I have already gone to using a lip gripper.

[CAGE RATTLER]

The water in the bay itself can cause infections if you have an open wound.

Check out the FISH OFF GLOVES from paxriver products. I have 2 pair on my boat and plan on using them on the yak too. They attach with velcro and you slide your hand in and pull it loose when handling fish. They work great. They have a model that will attch to your boat or cooler and one with a waist band.
Best $20 Ive spent!!

http://paxriverproducts.com/

[Memory Maker]

I think you just wasted a bunch of fish ........... you get the infection from handling the fish and not by eating them ............ cooking kills the bacteria ........

A guy from Hopkins did a study of the Bay waters ........ bottom line ..... it is worse than a toilet that hasn't been flushed in a few days .........

It's why I won't eat bay oysters ............ only Va Eastern Shore Salty's closest pollution is 30 + miles south and 30+ miles north and nothing but filtering marsh and ocean inlets in between ...........

[surfdog]

yeah if a striper has any lesions its going back. i caught 1 a few years ago at romancoke that was really bad, frankenfish, made the mistake of putting it in my cooler so i had to bleach the cooler when i got home. im glad all the ones ive caught this year have been fat and clean

[Southerly]

i think thorough washing is good 1st step but i would follow up with packing wound with neosporin. personally, i would not be over-alarmed but i would definitely keep an eye on it for surrounding redness or pain indicating infection and get medical attention if it showed any signs of getting worse.

windsurfing, i walked a lot of shallows and it never failed that if i got a sctach on barnacle rocks or other - the wound would 'heat up' by that evening if i didn't clean and pack with neosporin when i got home, but was never a problem if i did. as i see it, stuff that thrives in warm brackish bay has a fighting chance surviving in my warm brackish body.

i had a friend that got systemic infection from barnacle scratches and was hospitalized when he later became fevered. not sure that's myco but systemic infection is very serious.

[ronaultmtd]

It bled pretty good- probably because I take a 85 grain aspirin a day that thins the blood- but I am keeping an eye on the thumb. If it gets red and sore- I'll go to the doctors

[ictalurus]

You're more likely to get mycobacteriosis from getting poked by a fish or from water contacting an open wound (not 100% sure about that one) than from eating the fillets if they're thoroughly cooked. Myco requires cool temperatures to survive, which is why humans primarily get it in their hands and feet. Keep an eye on it, especially if the injury is in your knuckle, and keep it dressed with Neosporin or similar. For additional protection, soak your injured hand in warm water (as warm as you can stand it without cooking your hand) for 10-15min or so 1-2 times per day. I got stuck by catfish, striper, and white perch spines repeatedly during my master's research, and these were the instructions given to me at the emergency room where I was a regular. They had seen several people with "fish handler's disease", and it's tough to cure if the bacteria settles in. I got stuck by a particularly nasty cat, and I definitely soaked my hand for that one.

When I'm working on the boat and we're catching white perch or stripers in the trawl, I'll wear gloves with kevlar palms to keep from getting stuck. White perch spines seem extra brittle, and I got tired of having my wife pick the ends out of my hands when I got home. The gloves wouldn't be easy to fish in, though, so the Fish Off glove might be better to use on the hand landing the fish.

[kevinfry]

ahh Bill, Back from the tropics i see!