Botulism – Ukraine
- May 10, 2021
- < 1 min read
3 people in Chernihiv, Ukraine fell ill with botulism after consuming jerked fish.
People were hospitalized after consuming jerked fish instead of gutted fish. Symptoms appeared gradually with no drastic rise in body temperature. Symptoms can include paralysis of eye muscles, double vision, thirst/dryness in the mouth, and swallowing problems.
3 people were hospitalized, aged 34, 38, and 67 years old. They are still being treated in the region’s medical center.
The health ministry is doing an investigation on further understanding the disease and are performing laboratory tests to confirm the diagnosis.
Photo: Clostridium botulinum.
Foodborne botulism is a severe intoxication caused by eating the preformed toxin present in contaminated food. It occurs when spores of bacterium Clostridium botulinum germinate and the organism is allowed to grow and produce toxin in food that is later eaten without sufficient heating or cooking to inactivate the spores. Botulinum toxin is one of the most potent neurotoxins known.
Typically in a few hours to several days after ingestion of the contaminated food, one will start to show the classic symptoms: blurred vision, dry mouth, and difficulty in swallowing. Gastrointestinal symptoms may or may not occur. If untreated, the paralysis can descend through the body starting at the face and working its way down.
Prevention is primarily by proper food preparation. The toxin, though not the organism, is destroyed by heating it to more than 85 C (185 F) for longer than 5 minutes. Honey can contain the organism, and for this reason, honey should not be fed to children under 12 months.
Globally, botulism is fairly rare, with approximately 1,000 cases yearly.
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