Botulism

Botulism is an acute toxic and infectious disease of the food toxaemia group, caused by anaerobic bacteria and their toxins. The nerve-paralyzing botulism toxin is one of the most powerful poisons known to medicine and is feared as a potential biological weapon. The causative agent of botulism is a spore-forming rod; humans are infected when the botulism rods and their toxins enter the digestive tract with food. Infection usually occurs through canned foods that have not been subjected to proper sterilization. The average length of duration of botulism poisoning is 18-24 hours, during which time the patient has severe diarrhoea, vomiting, disturbed vision, intestinal cramps, loss of consciousness, and dehydration. Mortality rates are high, especially among the young and old.