Investigation into an outbreak of suspected shellfish poisoning caused by consuming Bullacta exarata

Abstract

ObjectiveThis study aimed to assess control measures regarding the epidemiological characteristics of food-borne disease outbreaks to guide future prevention measures and treatment methods.MethodsDescriptive epidemiological methods were used to retrospectively investigate poisoning events， and epidemiological characteristics were analyzed.ResultsA total of 55 incidents and three deaths were reported， of which 60% were in individuals aged over 50 years. The incidents were all caused by family meals， exhibiting distinct family clustering. The main clinical manifestations were abnormal liver function （54 cases， 98.2%）， nausea （36 cases， 65.5%）， fatigue （29 cases， 52.7%）， and partial numbness of the mouth and lip extremities （9 cases， 16.4%）. The food suspected to cause the disease was Bullacta exarata， of which paralytic shellfish poisoning was detected in six samples. After taking comprehensive prevention and control measures， the incident was brought under control.ConclusionThis is a food poisoning case study caused by the consumption of paralytic shellfish-poisoned snails. The presence of other pathogenic factors cannot be ruled out. It is suggested that related departments should strengthen education and monitor early warning symptoms.

Keywords

• food poisoning
• bullacta exarata
• paralytic shellfish poisoning
• epidemiological investigation
• zhangzhou city， fujian province