What potential long-term issue risks from leaving deeply embedded coral material behind?
Answer
Chronic inflammation or granulomas.
If small pieces of the coral skeleton or other foreign material are left embedded deep within the tissue following an injury—often presenting later as a tiny black dot—they can lead to chronic complications long after the initial wound has superficially healed. The body’s immune system recognizes this material as a persistent foreign body that cannot be cleared. This failure to resolve the invader often results in localized, long-term inflammatory responses. Granulomas, which are small nodules of inflammatory tissue that form around the retained particle, are a common manifestation of this chronic reaction to deeply lodged, unremoved debris.

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