A previously healthy 28-year-old woman presented to the outpatient department of a French clinic complaining of a painful rash on her right thigh. Five days earlier, she had been walking on the coastal rocks of an island in the Greek Cyclades archipelago, known for its abundant sea anemone populations. There, she fell, landing on her buttocks, and immediately felt severe pain in her right thigh, followed by itching and redness. She was unable to see what had stung her. After rinsing the rash with seawater, she applied emollient cream. Doctors Weniko Caré and Raphaële Mestiri shared their case in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Upon examination, numerous thin, erythematous, linear skin lesions were observed, arranged in a radial pattern with a central area of normal skin on the back of the right thigh. Based on the examination results, the patient was diagnosed with a sea anemone burn. Most sea anemones are harmless to humans, but the venom from the stinging cells of some can cause local skin inflammation, and in certain species, it is highly toxic, sometimes fatal. The woman was prescribed topical glucocorticoids and an emollient cream. At a follow-up examination three months later, only moderate residual hyperpigmentation remained on the skin.
