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Mild ciguatera poisoning: Case reports with neurophysiological evaluations
Author(s) -
Butera Raffaella,
Prockop Leon D.,
Buonocore Michelangelo,
Locatelli Carlo,
Gandini Cristiano,
Manzo Luigi
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
muscle and nerve
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.025
H-Index - 145
eISSN - 1097-4598
pISSN - 0148-639X
DOI - 10.1002/1097-4598(200010)23:10<1598::aid-mus20>3.0.co;2-p
Subject(s) - ciguatera , medicine , poison control , ciguatoxin , injury prevention , human factors and ergonomics , medical emergency , occupational safety and health , suicide prevention , physical medicine and rehabilitation , psychology , pathology , biology , fish <actinopterygii> , fishery
Ciguatera poisoning causes mainly gastrointestinal and neurological effects of variable severity. However, symptoms of peripheral neuropathy with paresthesias and paradoxical disturbance of thermal sensation are the hallmark. Electrophysiological studies are often normal, except in severe cases. We report four people who developed mild ciguatera poisoning after barracuda ingestion. Electrophysiological studies documented normocalcemic latent tetany. These findings are consistent with ciguatoxin's mechanism of toxicity, which involves inactivation of voltage‐gated Na + channels and eventually increases nerve membrane excitability. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Muscle Nerve 23: 1598–1603, 2000