BACKGROUND: In the tropic sea there are carnivore fishes, e.g. the "peak bass", that incorporate toxin producing seaweed and can cause the ciguatera intoxication. Due to the frequent tourism to tropic regions even more cases of ciguatera intoxication can be seen in Europe. The late phase of ciguatera intoxication has hardly been recognized due to its different unspecific symptoms. In some cases ciguatera intoxication can even grow a vital threatening. CASE DESCRIPTION: Four patients from a travel group addressed us 4 and 14 days after breaking off their holidays in the Dominican republic. They presented complex neurological symptoms including paraesthesia, nervousness, inverse temperature perception, muscle cramps, headache and dizziness. The physical and apparative investigation of the patients, whose age ranked between 22 and 31 years, was totally unobtrusive. Essential for the diagnosis of ciguatera intoxication was the clue to the symptom causing dinner at their holiday location existing of "peak bass and lemon sauce". First symptoms in all members of the travel group were diarrhea, sickness and sweating. In this late phase only a symptomatic therapy could be offered. CONCLUSION: The here described cases show the importance of a comprehensive information for tropic travellers as for physicians accounted to in the acute phase of ciguatera intoxication, because recognized early enough (within the first 24 hours) the total symptomatology of ciguatera intoxication can be prevented effectively by intravenous infusions of mannitol.
BACKGROUND: In the tropic sea there are carnivore fishes, e.g. the "peak bass", that incorporate toxin producing seaweed and can cause the ciguatera intoxication. Due to the frequent tourism to tropic regions even more cases of ciguatera intoxication can be seen in Europe. The late phase of ciguatera intoxication has hardly been recognized due to its different unspecific symptoms. In some cases ciguatera intoxication can even grow a vital threatening. CASE DESCRIPTION: Four patients from a travel group addressed us 4 and 14 days after breaking off their holidays in the Dominican republic. They presented complex neurological symptoms including paraesthesia, nervousness, inverse temperature perception, muscle cramps, headache and dizziness. The physical and apparative investigation of the patients, whose age ranked between 22 and 31 years, was totally unobtrusive. Essential for the diagnosis of ciguatera intoxication was the clue to the symptom causing dinner at their holiday location existing of "peak bass and lemon sauce". First symptoms in all members of the travel group were diarrhea, sickness and sweating. In this late phase only a symptomatic therapy could be offered. CONCLUSION: The here described cases show the importance of a comprehensive information for tropic travellers as for physicians accounted to in the acute phase of ciguatera intoxication, because recognized early enough (within the first 24 hours) the total symptomatology of ciguatera intoxication can be prevented effectively by intravenous infusions of mannitol.
Authors: J H Pearn; R J Lewis; T Ruff; M Tait; J Quinn; W Murtha; G King; A Mallett; N C Gillespie Journal: Med J Aust Date: 1989-07-17 Impact factor: 7.738