In an unusual incident at Coral Beach in Eilat, 10-year-old Shir, who was spending time with her family in the area, stepped off a rock into shallow water without water shoes and was bitten on her foot by a moray eel.
The bite caused deep lacerations and a complete tear of the extensor tendon of the big toe. The girl was evacuated to Yoseftal Medical Center of the Clalit Group, where she received initial treatment including irrigation and antibiotic coverage to prevent infections originating from the marine environment.
An examination at the hospital revealed that Shir was unable to move her big toe. Due to the injury, she was taken into surgery under general anesthesia, during which the complete tear of the extensor tendon was located, reconstructed, and sutured. After the surgery, her foot was immobilized in a cast, and she was discharged home for further recovery.
Dr. Sergey Boikov, head of the Orthopedics Department at Yoseftal Medical Center, said: "During the examination, we saw that the girl was unable to move her big toe. In surgery, we located a full tear of the extensor tendon and sutured it to prevent future functional impairment. Children recover well from such injuries, and we expect a full recovery."
'The risk increases near rocks and in the evening hours'
According to Dr. Naseef Assala, head of the Pediatrics Department at Yoseftal, moray eels do not typically attack humans, but the risk of such an encounter increases near rocks and during evening hours. "We recommend that bathers do not approach marine life and enter the water strictly with water shoes," he said.
Shir's mother said she was pleasantly surprised by the care her daughter received: "The service and medical care were excellent. This event taught us an important lesson: You don't enter the water in reef areas without water shoes, not even for a single second."
In this case, what started as an innocent step off a rock into shallow water ended in the operating room. If there is one conclusion to draw from the event, it is that water shoes are not exactly the most unnecessary item in a beach bag, especially when entering the water in a reef area.
