Preprint Review Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Epidemiology and Toxicology of Ciguatera Poisoning in the Colombian Caribbean

Version 1 : Received: 18 July 2020 / Approved: 19 July 2020 / Online: 19 July 2020 (21:04:20 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Navarro Quiroz, R.; Herrera-Usuga, J.C.; Osorio-Ospina, L.M.; Garcia-Pertuz, K.M.; Navarro Quiroz, E. Epidemiology and Toxicology of Ciguatera Poisoning in the Colombian Caribbean. Mar. Drugs 2020, 18, 504. Navarro Quiroz, R.; Herrera-Usuga, J.C.; Osorio-Ospina, L.M.; Garcia-Pertuz, K.M.; Navarro Quiroz, E. Epidemiology and Toxicology of Ciguatera Poisoning in the Colombian Caribbean. Mar. Drugs 2020, 18, 504.

Abstract

The ciguatera is a food poisoning caused by the consumption of primarily coral fish; these species exist in large numbers in the seas that bathe the Colombian territory. The underreported diagnosis of this clinical entity has been widely highlighted due to multiple factors, as are among others, ignorance by the primary care practitioner consulted for this condition, clinical similarity with secondary gastroenteric symptoms, to common food poisonings of bacterial, parasitic or viral etiology. Eventually people affected by ciguatotoxin are related to trips to coastal areas hours before the onset of symptoms. Thanks to multiple studies over the years it has been possible to identify the relation of the dinoflagellates in the assembly of said toxin and its introduction into the food chain, starting by fish primarily inhabiting reef ecosystems and culminating in the intake of these by humans. Identifying the epidemiological link, its cardinal symptoms and affected systems such as gastrointestinal, peripheral nervous system and fortunately with a low frequency, the cardiovascular system, leads to a purely clinical diagnostic impression without further complementary studies, performing an adequate treatment primarily symptomatic without underestimating or overlooking any associated complications.

Keywords

Ciguatotoxin; dinoflagellates; intoxication; mannitol

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics

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