It is NOT a myth that you will have affects worse than a bee sting. These fish are venomous, and don't have to do anything to sting you, all you have to do is touch the spines. Your LFS guy probably touched the fish where it didn't have stingers, to show off. The top spines are the poisonous ones. They will not try to sting you unless you are a threat. If you are just moving some stuff around, or cleaning, just watch where you put your hand. If you go around trying to chase him with your hand or cornering him, yea, he will turn around and try to defend himself. I did a lot of reaserch on these guys, because I knew they were venomous, and if I'm allergic to bees, then I wanted to make sure not do do anything wrong with these guys.
I have a couple websites that I have gotten my info, and I know it's rude to link to another fish site, so I'll quote some things.
THE ENVENOMATION
"Stings from lionfishes are a defensive response, typically to being cornered or harassed in some way, with the dorsal spines being the predominant weapon. Lionfishes can charge at an adversary at surprising speed considering their less-than-hydrodynamic appearance, and wield the dorsal spines like so many tiny lances in a joust. This happens most often during tank maintenance, when the aquarist's attention may move away from the fish and to the task at hand. While most fishes will typically move away from a scrubbing arm, the lionfishes have a habit of occasionally moving away - just enough to get a running start back at the arm. I have been stung myself in this way, and I'll tell you that it happened in the blink of an eye. My advice is to watch what you are doing and don't assume that a fish you've had for a while has somehow turned "tame", as the 12" individual that stung me had been in an aquarium under my care for at least two years without incident. For whatever reason, it was "spooked" that day, and reminded me that I shouldn't be so careless as to ignore it. Of course, the other common way to get stung is to attempt to handle a lionfish during transportation, introduction, or relocation, with the end result being the same. "
"The mechanism of the sting is actually rather simple. Each spine is covered with a sheath-like integumen from tip to base, which is compressed down the spine when the spine is thrust into a victim's flesh. The venom glands are positioned at the base of the spine, and upon compression of the integumen, they are basically squeezed from above and thus release their product. The venom then travels through thin grooves in the spine and is delivered into the puncture wound created by the spine. As I understand it, the harder the strike, the deeper the wound, the more compression, and the more venom injected. Hence, light strikes can be far less injurious than hard ones"
THE EFFECTS
"Again, while stories of death by lionfish are common, it has been impossible for me to find a single documented case of such after an extensive search of medical literature. Other authors have reported the same results. This does not mean that it has never happened, but it implies that death by lionfish is exceptionally rare or unrecognized. It may in fact be limited only to those victims that might display some sort of allergic reaction, or to those that suffer from a fatal infection related to the wound."
"Conversely, in the vast majority of cases, the predominant effects of a sting are nothing more than severe pain and swelling (edema) in the area around the puncture. Some victims have experienced systematic responses such as nausea, dizziness, muscle weakness, shortness of breath, hypotension, and headache brought on by the venom, or as a reaction to the level of pain, or both, but that's about it. In the worst of cases when medical treatment has been administered, some blistering and/or tissue loss (necrosis) has been experienced in the wound area, but this is very uncommon.
In a series of 101 documented cases of captive lionfish envenomations in the US, the following effects were reported (Gallagher, 2001):
92% of patients experienced local pain
60% of patients experienced edema
13% of patients experienced systematic symptoms
1% of patients experienced tissue necrosis
0% of patients experienced death"
THE RESPONSES
"There are several things to do if stung by a lionfish, one of which is getting professional help. I realize I've just pointed out that the chances of receiving a serious injury are slim, but that's if a sting is treated promptly and properly. Avoiding professional help, or neglecting such an injury, can be very painful and can lead to real trouble. Applying first aid at home can help to relieve the pain almost immediately, but a trip to the emergency room is strongly advised."
