Increase in food poisoning cases

SGGP 11/06/2023 09:05

On June 10th, the Food Safety Department of the Ministry of Health issued a document requesting the Departments of Health in provinces and cities, and the Food Safety Management Boards of Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, and Bac Ninh to intensify propaganda on food safety and prevention of food poisoning...

The doctor is examining the patient.

In response to the increasing number of food poisoning cases caused by pathogenic microorganisms and natural toxins in poisonous mushrooms, insects, plants, wild fruits, and seafood, on June 10th, the Food Safety Department of the Ministry of Health issued a document requesting the Departments of Health in provinces and cities, and the Food Safety Management Boards of Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, and Bac Ninh to intensify propaganda on food safety, prevention of food poisoning, and foodborne diseases to raise awareness and change unsafe food behavior; and to guide food production and business establishments and consumers to absolutely not use livestock and poultry that have died from disease or unknown causes as food or for food processing.

Publicize information to discourage people from harvesting, catching, trading, or using poisonous mushrooms, exotic insects, pufferfish, sea cucumbers, exotic snails, and unusual plants and fruits. Strengthen food safety inspections and monitoring of food production and business establishments, focusing on ready-to-eat food production facilities; beverage and ice businesses; food service establishments; and collective kitchens. Early detection and strict handling of food safety violations, and publicizing violations in the media to promptly warn the community. In particular, units should continue to strengthen prevention and control of poisoning caused by Clostridium botulinum...

* On June 10th, Bai Chay Hospital ( Quang Ninh province) reported that it had admitted two patients from Quang Yen town, Quang Ninh province, who were hospitalized with symptoms of vomiting, difficulty breathing, deep coma, respiratory failure, and a critical prognosis due to eating grilled sea cucumbers.

Upon admission, doctors promptly implemented emergency detoxification and intensive resuscitation measures according to protocol, and both patients are now out of danger.

* On the same day, Dr. Vu Hiep Phat, Head of the Emergency Department at Children's Hospital 2 in Ho Chi Minh City, said that they had just received a child patient who had been poisoned after eating mushrooms growing from cicada carcasses.

Earlier, at around 5 PM on June 6th, T. (from Dong Nai province) took mushrooms that had grown from cicada carcasses from behind her field and prepared them as food, then ate them with her mother (T. ate 5 mushrooms, her mother ate 2). About an hour later, family members discovered that both mother and daughter were experiencing severe abdominal pain, dizziness, and vomiting undigested food, so they were taken to a local hospital.

After two days of treatment at a lower-level hospital, T. was transferred to Children's Hospital 2 in a comatose state, with severe cardiac arrhythmia and liver and kidney damage. Through intensive examination and treatment, T.'s health gradually improved.

Source