Symptoms and Treatment
The diagnosis of pufferfish poisoning is based on the observed symptomology and recent dietary history.
Symptoms typically develop within 30 minutes of ingestion, but may be delayed by up to four hours; however, death once occurred within 17 minutes of ingestion. Paresthesia of the lips and tongue is followed by sialorrhea, sweating, headache, weakness, lethargy, incoordination, tremor, paralysis, cyanosis, aphonia, dysphagia, seizures, dyspnea, bronchorrhea, bronchospasm, respiratory failure, coma, and hypotension. Gastroenteric symptoms are often severe and include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. Cardiac arrhythmias may precede complete respiratory failure and cardiovascular collapse.
The first symptom of intoxication is a slight numbness of the lips and tongue, appearing between 20 minutes to three hours after eating poisonous pufferfish. The next symptom is increasing paresthesia in the face and extremities, which may be followed by sensations of lightness or floating. Headache, epigastric pain, nausea, diarrhea, and/or vomiting may occur. Occasionally, some reeling or difficulty in walking may occur. The second stage of the intoxication is increasing paralysis. Many victims are unable to move; even sitting may be difficult. There is increasing respiratory distress. Speech is affected, and the victim usually exhibits dyspnea, cyanosis, and hypotension. Paralysis increases and convulsions, mental impairment, and cardiac arrhythmia may occur. The victim, although completely paralyzed, may be conscious and in some cases completely lucid until shortly before death. Death usually occurs within 4 to 6 hours, with a known range of about 20 minutes to 8 hours.
If the patient survives 24 hours, recovery without any residual effects will usually occur over several days.
Therapy is supportive and based on symptoms, with aggressive early airway management. If ingested, treatment can consist of emptying the stomach, feeding the victim activated charcoal to bind the toxin, and taking standard life-support measures to keep the victim alive until the effect of the poison has worn off. Alpha adrenergic agonists are recommended in addition to intravenous fluids to combat hypotension. Anticholinesterase agents have been used with mixed success. No antidote has been developed and approved for human use; but a monoclonal antibody specific to tetrodotoxin has been developed by USAMRIID and was shown to be effective for reducing lethality in murine tests.
Read more about this topic: Tetrodotoxin, Poisoning
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