Compartment syndrome following a jellyfish sting: a case report

BACKGROUND: While the majority of reported cases of jellyfish envenomation are self-limited with few lasting complications, a few can cause life-threatening and debilitating illnesses. We present the case of a 15-year-old male who had an unusual presentation of a jellyfish sting that led to acute compartment syndrome. CASE PRESENTATION: A 15-year-old Lebanese (Arab) boy was stung by a jellyfish, which led to acute compartment syndrome in the left arm. Decompression fasciotomy and local application of diluted nitroglycerin helped to relieve the ulnar and radial artery spasms. The patient was left with shoulder and elbow pain and elbow flexion weakness, which improved after physiotherapy over a period of 6 weeks. CONCLUSIONS: Current therapy recommendations for acute compartment syndrome following jellyfish stings are mainly based on case reports. Urgent fasciotomy and local application of nitroglycerin have been demonstrated to be helpful in severe jellyfish stings associated with acute compartment syndrome.