# Did I get something from my fish?



## P.senegalus (Aug 18, 2011)

I noticed a few bumps on one of my fingers that showed up 2 days after doing a water change on my 55 gal aquarium. At first it itched slightly but now it itches quite a bit. I put anti itch medicine on it, so far the bumps are the same, no worse. Photo below:
 It has been 3 days since the bumps showed.


Then tonight when feeding my fish I noticed one of my fish with red spots on it and a bulging eye. I wish my camera was better but this is the best picture I could get. It looks bacterial to me but I am not sure. I have separated this fish in a hospital tank, I hope its not contagious.


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## C. King (Dec 14, 2012)

I know of no fish disease that is transmittable to humans. (without eating them) However, there is plenty of bacteria in aquarium water, and that could theoretically cause a skin infection, especially if there was already a break in the skin. Scrub with soap, maybe some betadine wash, and triple antibiotic ointment. If you see no improvement by tomorrow, or it gets worse, you should probably see a doctor.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

a couple of things here...uit could be just an allergic reaction..i am allergic to all types of crustaceans... shrimp squid and krill are in almost all foods..
BUT...........................
there is a fish disease called " fish tuberculosis'.....HUMANS CAN CONTRACT THIS DISEASE...AND IT IS HORRIBLE...........
fish TB is related to the flesh eating disease...all it takes is tank water getting into an open scratch or cut..it can take as much as a year of heavy antibiotic treatments to cure...

while i hate to be an alarmist , i do suggest you see a doctor as soon as possible..just to be safe..


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## Betta man (Mar 25, 2011)

Idk if it's the same, and I don't think it is, but myco is contagious too.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

That is definitely what it looks like to me. Mycobacterium marinum. Fish TB, AKA Fish handler's disease. Get to a doctor ASAP.


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## P.senegalus (Aug 18, 2011)

I thought it was fish tb too so I went to the doctor Friday. The doctor said it is a fungus. I told her I have aquariums, and she gave me an antibiotic and told me to buy some fungus cream
She was pretty sure it was caused by a fungi, similar to ringworm and asked if I do any gardening. I said yes and she thinks I got it from the dirt. I got some tinactin(sp?) yesterday and today the redness is gone and it does not itch anymore so I'm hoping the doctor knows what she was talking about and what I have is not fish related. I'll know later if it spreads or gets worse but I hope it doesn't.

I did buy some kanaplex for my fish because after reading about this fish tuberculosis, I think my fish does have it (or something bacteria related)in the 55 gallon aquarium because the fish pictured has a lot of the symptoms.The kanaplex came in the mail today, I'm treating the hospital tank tonight and thinking I should treat the tank the fish came from too. I will be wearing gloves while doing water changes in that tank for now at least.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Good luck!


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## Guest (Jun 22, 2013)

Good luck. Always make sure that you don't have any sores or open wounds on your hands or arms when you do water changes. I hope you and your fish get well soon.

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## P.senegalus (Aug 18, 2011)

Good news for me: The rash went away! I kept putting the medicine on the bumps and today I can hardly see them. No more itching.

However my fish do not seem to be getting better. I lost one and now some other fish in the same tank look like they may have whatever it is.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

not sure what to tell you..try Metronidazole....


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

glad your finger was just fungus. very treatable. Keep it dry. There are all sorts of nasties that can move from water to bloodstream. Extremely rare, but very possible. The "flesh-eating" bacteria that got Aimee Copland came from a local waterway. An organism doesn't have to be a "disease" per se to be bad for you if it gets in and multiplies.

That poor fish looks horrible. Hope you don't have to start all over.


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## P.senegalus (Aug 18, 2011)

I hope I don't have to start over too, I recently added 3 sailfin mollies to the tank before the sickness. They look good right now but I'm afraid if I move them I'll just spread the disease.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

That's extremely likely, yes.


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