Two severe cases of botulism have been registered in the Vitebsk region

January 14, Vitebsk / Sergey Kochetov - BELTA/. Two cases of severe botulism have been registered in the Vitebsk region. This was reported to a BELTA correspondent by the regional center for hygiene, epidemiology and public health. Residents of the village of Kommunarka sought medical help. They were immediately hospitalized with a diagnosis of botulism and are currently undergoing inpatient treatment. As established, the victims (mother and son) had been consuming homemade canned mushrooms for a long time. Specialists remind that this disease is caused by botulism bacteria toxins, which enter the body when consuming food containing such toxins. Most often, this refers to canned goods (vegetable, mushroom, meat, fish), especially homemade ones, as well as smoked and salted fish, homemade ham and sausages. Symptoms of the disease include weakness, headache, dizziness, and in severe cases, speech impairment, vision and swallowing disorders. To prevent the disease, it is necessary to strictly adhere to the technological regimes for preparing canned products. Vegetables and fruits should be thoroughly washed and canned with sufficient amounts of salt, sugar, and food acids. Mushrooms are recommended to be salted or marinated with the addition of sufficient amounts of salt and acids with mandatory preliminary heat treatment. It is also recommended to heat-treat canned mushrooms before consumption. Before opening cans of preserves, they should be inspected, as when the botulism pathogen develops in them, the cans may swell, and their contents may acquire the smell of butyric acid. However, in some cases, the color, taste, and smell of the contents do not deteriorate. In 2010, 6 cases of botulism were registered in the Vitebsk region, and a year earlier there were 5 such cases. -0-