March 21, 2006 - 0 comments
 
Bangkok -- An occurrence of botulism that is possibly the worst incident on record worldwide has brought emergency shipments of antitoxin from Canada, England and the United States.
An American expert is investigating the outbreak of food poisoning after finding that the bacteria that caused it is the same strain used to produce biological weapons.
Thai and international health officials called for antitoxin serum from the Center for Disease Control in United States, England and Canada to treat more than 143 people in Thailand's northern Nan province who contracted botulism from contaminated bamboo shoots prepared in a traditional manner. They suffered from stomach pains, vomiting and muscle weakness after eating fermented bamboo shoots that had been stored in aluminum trays.
Among the villagers, 143 were admitted to hospital, with 33 of them needing respirators to assist their breathing, another 36 awaiting medical examinations to determine if they need respirators, while the remaining 74 patients are hospitalized under close medical supervision.
The experts from the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention are investigating the outbreak and have brought 50 doses of anti-toxin serum. Britain and Canada also have sent serum.
The serum is used to cure botulism, a form of food poisoning caused by the clostridium botulinum bacteria, one of several used in biological weapons.
Thai officials have given no indication that the food poisoning originated from anything else but contaminated food. Cases of botulism are reported in Thailand and across the world each year.
Thai officials say U.S. health experts are eager to study such outbreaks of botulism to strengthen preparedness for biological weapons attacks in the United States.
