That’s got to hurt

Doctors near Trout Central in the town of Bridgeport in the Eastern Sierra devised a novel method of tracking fishhook injuries. They removed the barbs from patients and stuck them into the anatomical corollary on a doll. Over the years, clipped fishing line conjoined the dolls, above. This ritual no longer exists because of healthcare policies and standards, but fishermen continue to snag hooks in all part of their bodies.

Ed Guzman, a paramedic in Oakhurst, Calif., near Bass Lake, says fishermen yelp most often when baiting hooks or tying them onto their line. Then there’s the beer factor. “Alcohol plays a large part in fishhook accidents,” he says.

The barbs, laced with salmon guts, PowerBait or Velveeta, become a stellar source of potential infection, so it’s best to remove them promptly. Here’s one do-it-yourself trick: If you have a hook stuck in your finger or forearm, wrap a piece of string or cord around the hook to make a tight loop, press down on the shank of the hook and then give the string a hard tug. “It’s like popping out a tooth,” says Jeff Jackson, an ER nurse at Tahoe Forest Hospital in Truckee, Calif. “We’ve pulled ‘em out of eyebrows, or the back of the ear. Single, even treble hooks.” Of course you then need to wash out the wound with soap and water or antiseptic.

-- Mary Forgione