Tuesday, January 16, 2007 Boils may have caused food poisoning of Asean dancers: health
A RANKING health official on Monday said bacteria from boils and skin lesions of a person or persons might have led to the food poisoning of artists who were supposed to perform at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit gala night.
Dr. Eric Tayag, head of the Department of Health-National Epidemiology Center (DOH-NEC), said doctors are suspecting that it was staphylococcus orius bacteria that contaminated the food served to the performers last Sunday who all suffered stomach pains and diarrhea.
He said doctors used as basis for their initial prognosis the symptoms showed by the victims and the incubation period of the bacteria.
But Tayag quickly added: "We're not blaming the food handlers, we're also looking at other causes like the possibility that the food is spoiled."
He clarified that there were actually 55 performers who suffered diarrhea after eating packed lunch served to them and not 95 as reported earlier by the media.
"The 40 didn't get ill but they went to the hospital because they ate the same meal and were advised to see the doctor," said Tayag.
Staphylococcus orius is a type of bacteria, which according to Tayag, comes from "people with boils and skin lesions."
The victims vomited and experienced diarrhea within six to eight hours from the time they were fed, which are characteristics of bacterial poisoning.
"Samples stools from the victims and the food they ate were taken for laboratory testing at the regional office of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) in Cebu and at the Vicente Sotto Medical Center. Doctors are also interviewing the food handlers," added Tayag. (MSN/Sunnex)
