This description does not indicate a culprit in the manufacture of the
product or it's packaging. If anybody knows any more about this I would
be interested - please e-mail me directly.
-Liz
===========================
> Date: Fri, 15 Dec 2006 19:06:58 -0500 (EST)
> From: ProMED-mail <promed@promed.isid.harvard.edu>
> Subject: PRO/EDR> Botulism, salted fish - Russia (Buryatiya)
>
> BOTULISM, SALTED FISH - RUSSIA (BURYATIYA)
> ******************************************
> A ProMED-mail post
> <http://www.promedmail.org>
> ProMED-mail is a program of the
> International Society for Infectious Diseases
> <http://www.isid.org>
>
> Date: Tue 12 Dec 2006
> From: ProMED-mail <promed@promedmail.org>
> Source: News agency "Regnum.ru", [translated by Mod.NP; edited]
> <http://www.regnum.ru/news/753635.html>
>
>
> The 1st death from a botulism in 2006 has been registered in Buryatiya. The
> press-service of the Territorial Management of Federal Services for
> Protection of Consumers' Rights and Human Well-being [Rospotrebnadzor] has
> announced that a 66 year old inhabitant of the Zaigraevskiy district of
> Buryatiya died before arrival of an ambulance after eating salted omul fish.
>
> Noncommercial production has been found in Ulan-Ude [capital of Buryatiya -
> Mod.NP] in the settlement of Vostichniy. Eight individuals have suffered
> from botulism in Buryatiya since the beginning of 2006. Over the last 5
> years, more than 400 cases of botulism have been registered in Buryatiya,
> including 27 fatalities. All cases are connected to the use of salted or
> smoked omul, prepared in domestic conditions or obtained from unknown
> persons in places of non-authorized trade.
>
> - --
> ProMED-mail
> <promed@promedmail.org>
>
> [Buryatiya is located in the southern part of Eastern Siberia, to the south
> and to the east of Lake Baikal. The total area of the republic is 351.3
> square kilometers, which is about the size of Germany. It is bounded by
> Irkutsk and Chita regions, the Republic of Tuva, and in the south with
> Mongolian National Republic. Fish dishes from omul (fried, salted, or
> smoked) are traditional Baikal delicacies. - Mod.NP
>
> The Omul or Arctic cisco, _Coregonus autumnalis migratorius_, is a
> salmon-like fish found only in the waters of Lake Baikal in Siberia,
> Russia. It is a vital food fish for the Baikal region and, for the rural
> population, is often necessary for survival. Its caviar is considered a
> delicacy. Apart from local consumption, export to the west of Russia is
> important, though difficult due to the region's remoteness. Obtaining
> smoked omul (and possible botulism) is a highlight (the former, not the
> latter) for many travelers on the Trans-Siberian railway. A picture of the
> fish can be found at:
> <http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/it/thumb/d/d4/Omul.jpg/350px-Omul.jpg>
> A map of the republic can be found at:
> <http://personal.telefonica.terra.es/web/vexicat/rusmap_buryatia.gif>
>
> ProMED-mail has posted reports of botulism from Buryatiya in past years and
> always linked to fish.
>
> The method of diagnosis of botulism is not stated here. Individual cases of
> the paralysis can be confused with other diseases, but a cluster of such
> cases is certainly likely to be botulism. Type E botulism is the type
> frequently associated with fish products (1) so it is likely here.
>
> Classically, botulism is a foodborne disease caused by the ingestion of
> preformed toxin, although there also exists wound botulism (in which _C.
> botulinum_ spores germinate in a wound) and infant botulism (in which the
> spores germinate in the intestinal tract).
>
> Types A, B, and E of human botulism are the most common. Although each type
> has a similar symptom complex, Hughes and colleagues report that type E is
> much more likely to produce initial lethargic mental status and more
> autonomic dysfunction (2).
>
> 1. Weber JT, Hibbs RG, Darwish A, et al. A massive outbreak of type E
> botulism associated with traditional salted fish in Cairo. J Infect Dis
> 1993; 167: 451-4.
> 2. Hughes JM, Hatheway CL, Ostroff SM: Botulism. In: Scheld WM, Whitley RJ,
> Durack DT, editors. Infections of the central nervous system. 2nd edition.
> Philadelphia: Lippincott-Raven, 1997, 615-28. - Mod.LL]
>
>
-- Liz Brown Assistant Professor Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory Program School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences University of Alaska Fairbanks PO Box 1549 Dillingham, Alaska 99576 907-842-1265 fax 907-842-3202 http://seagrant.uaf.edu/map
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