Baby with botulism in hospital

A 16 week old baby is in hospital with botulism, apparently the first such case in Scotland in over 25 years.

Logan Douglas from Dunfermline, Fife, was admitted to the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh in September. His condition is described as critical but stable.

What is botulism?

Botulism is caused by either eating or breathing in a toxin produced by a bacterium called Clostridium botulinum. The toxin is one of the most deadly known to man.

Spores from the bacterium are commonly found in the soil and marine sediments. Cases of infant botulism are very rare. They usually occur when an infant swallows spores which then germinate in the intestine to form bacteria and a potent neurotoxin.

In an adult, the body's natural defence mechanism usually stops the spores from germinating and the growth of the bacteria, but babies and infants are more vulnerable.

Other cases of infant botulism have occurred after eating honey contaminated with bacterial spores. For this reason, the World Health Organisation currently recommends that all children under the age of one should not be given honey.

What are the symptoms?

Symptoms take around 12 to 36 hours to begin after eating or breathing in the toxin, but can take longer to appear in infants. They usually include:

• Blurred vision
• Difficulty eating or swallowing
• Occasionally diarrhoea and vomiting
• Paralysis

How do you catch it?

Until recently, most cases of botulism occurred by eating food contaminated with bacterial spores. As the bacterium cannot survive in the presence of oxygen, the most common source was contaminated food which has been stored in air tight containers.

Although temperatures greater than 120 Celsius are needed to destroy the spores, the toxin is easily destroyed at normal cooking temperatures.

In the past ten years, over a hundred cases of wound botulism have occurred in the UK, mostly in intravenous drug users.

An anti-toxin is available to help treat the disease.

This article was published on Thu 5 November 2009