Publication Date:
2021-05-19
Description:
If seafood poisonings are well documented in the Pacific region, they are not often reported in
the Indian Ocean.
In Madagascar, fishermen and people living in coastal areas are traditionally aware of seafood poi -
sonings . Mass intoxications were described in the sixties, including lethal cases following sardine
ingestion. From 1989 to 1993, 28 ichtyosarcotoxism cases, mainly ciguatera occurring in children,
were reported in Tulear hospital . From July 1993 to May 1996, nine seafood poisoning outbreaks
occurred in coastal villages after turtle, shark and sardine meals. Clinical symptoms were related to
marine toxins. For turtle intoxications, gastro-intestinal symptoms are the most frequently seen
(acute stomatitis, dysphagia, vomiting and diarrhea) , with case fatality rates around 7 %. For
shark intoxications, the most frequent symptoms were neurologic (paresthesia specially peribuccal
and extremities), and gastro-intestinal (diarrhea and vomiting), with specific case fatality rates
varying from 0 % to 30 %. For sardine intoxication, symptoms were gastro-intestinal (vomiting)
and neurologic (paresthesia), and from the two intoxicated people one died.
Two previously unknown biotoxins were isolated from the liver of a shark responsible for a mass
poisoning, namely carchatoxins. For the turtles, the search of chelonitoxin is under way. For the
sardines, clupeotoxin was isolated.
Because of the frequency and the gravity of collective seafood poisonings occurring in recent
years, the Ministry of Health has implemented a Seafood Poisoning National Control Programme.
This programme is based on three major strategies : the setting of an epidemiological surveillance
network, the prevention of the communities through educational programmes, and the develop -
pement of research on marine eco-environment.
Description:
Published
Keywords:
Sardines
;
Biotoxins
;
Chelonitoxism
;
Ciguatera
;
Ichtysarcotoxism
;
Clupeotoxin
;
Seafood
;
Poisoning
Repository Name:
AquaDocs
Type:
Journal Contribution
,
Non-Refereed
,
Article
Format:
76077 bytes
Format:
application/pdf
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