Clinical features of types A and B food-borne botulism.
Published
Journal Article
Medical records of 55 patients with type A and type B food-borne botulism reported to the Centers for Disease Control during 2 years were reviewed to assess the clinical features and severity of illness, diagnostic test results, nature of complications, amd causes of death. Some patients had features not usually associated with botulism including paresthesia (14%), asymmetric extremely weakness (17%), asymmetric ptosis (8%), slightly elevated cerebrospinal fluid protein values (14%), and positive responses to edrophonium chloride(26%). Several observation suggest that type A was more severe than type B disease. Although the case-fatality ratio was not significantly greater, patients with type A disease saw a physician earlier in the course of illness, were more likely to need ventilatory support, and were hospitalized longer. Patients who died were older than those who survived. Deaths within the first 2 weeks resulted from failure to recognized the severity of the disease or from pulmonary or systemic infection whereas the three late deaths were related to respirator malfunction.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Hughes, JM; Blumenthal, JR; Merson, MH; Lombard, GL; Dowell, VR; Gangarosa, EJ
Published Date
- October 1, 1981
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 95 / 4
Start / End Page
- 442 - 445
PubMed ID
- 7283294
Pubmed Central ID
- 7283294
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 0003-4819
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.7326/0003-4819-95-4-442
Language
- eng
Conference Location
- United States