Is there evidence to show that Steve Irwin should have left the barb in, until he got medical attention?

Question

When you get stabbed with a knife, they say to leave the knife in until you get medical attention

That is to say, maybe immediately pulling the barb out caused severe bleeding contributed to his death. If he left it in, he might have had a chance to survive?

I heard from experts that the poison isnt what killed him.

Answer 1

Stingray venom is very painful, but rarely fatal. Stingray fatalities typically occur when a barb hits a vital organ, artery, or vein. Whenever you're cut or stabbed, and the object is still imbedded, and you're still conscious; NEVER, EVER REMOVE THE OBJECT. Knives, nails, shrapnel, stinger, etc. That's what's keeping you alive and conscious. Pulling it out can cause you to bleed out and die within seconds to minutes, depending on the location. Even seemingly minor injuries can get worse when you pull out the object. The pain of the sting and the panic caused by being underwater to boot, likely caused him to pull the barb out. There was a toxicologist and a medical team on hand, but there wasn't much or anything they could do once the bleeding started. Stingray stings often require surgery since stingray barbs are made of cartilage, are serrated, and are so brittle that it's very common for them to fragment inside the wound. The best thing for the Crocodile Hunter was for him to leave it in, but it's understandable that he pulled it out given the pain that stingrays dish out when stinging. Anyone can lose their presence of mind and common sense when placed in a situation like that.

Answer 2

I haven't heard or seen anything on that yet... but if you think about it , most people would react that way, plus not only are the creatures that stabbed him equipped with serrated knife type tails but they also contain poison which most likely would have killed him anyway since it actually pierced his heart.. in any case it really is very sad and heartbreaking for his family and the rest of the world we all lost a wonderful guy!

Answer 3

From what we have heard in Australia it wouldnt have made a difference, if it wasnt a hole in the heart it would have been an allergic reaction anyway. The Irwins had a private memoriam yesterday and is having public one during the week. I will be more than likely to attend. RIP steve.

Answer 4

There might have been a chance...however, it sounded like the barb hit his heart. With the heart pumping away, the barb stuck in his heart, with motion, would also cause deadly damage- bleeding, arrythmias and so on. I don't think he had a chance. We'll miss him.

Answer 5

The coroner will likely look into that, and perhaps include it in his recommendations. It's a good question, probably not enough people get stung for there really to be much knowledge on that. If dive boats carried the anti-venom in military syle atropine injectors that might make sense.

Answer 6

Does it really matter? The man is dead, why does there need to be discussion of what he should or should not have done. He is the animal expert, I think he would know what he should or should not have done. Unfortunately for him it didn't help and the world lost a great man.

Answer 7

The venom from the barb is what killed him. Even though it went through his heart. No it wouldn't have made a diffirence.

(Steve, we're gonna miss ya mate.)

Answer 8

Don't think so, it is my understanding that he died instantly. The only one that witnessed this was the photographer filming this and hope this never gets released. I certainly wouldn't want to se it. I will say that it did hurt us when we heard the news, we really liked him and let him and his world into our heart.

Answer 9

i think he didn't realize how far the barb had gone. and because it was poisonus (sp?) he didn't want the poison to spred through his body.
i was going to ask the same question myself but you beat me to it.

Answer 10

thats a heartless question to ask at this time