Home > Medical Reference > Encyclopedia (English)

Toggle: English / Spanish

Ask Our Experts

Get answers to your specific medical questions from UM Medical Center experts.

Note: This is for informational purposes only. Doctors cannot provide a diagnosis via e-mail.

 

Related Content

Our Doctors

Patient Success Stories

Speciality Services

Podcasts

Poisoning - fish and shellfish

Alternative Names:

Fish poisoning; Dinoflagellate poisoning; Seafood contamination; Paralytic shellfish poisoning; Ciguatera poisoning

Home Treatment:

Shellfish Poisoning may be a medical emergency. With sudden or significant symptoms, the person should be taken immediately to an emergency medical facility. You may need to call the local emergency number (such as 911) or Poison Control for appropriate treatment information

Before Calling Emergency:

Determine the following information:

Poison Control, or a local emergency number:

The National Poison Control Center (1-800-222-1222) can be called from anywhere in the United States. This national hotline number will let you talk to experts in poisoning. They will give you further instructions.

This is a free and confidential service. All local poison control centers in the U.S. use this national number. You should call if you have any questions about poisoning or poison prevention. It does NOT need to be an emergency. You can call for any reason, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

See National Poison Control center .

What to expect at the emergency room:

If you have Ciguatera poisoning, you may receive:

If you have Scombroid poisoning, you may receive:

If you have shellfish poisoning, you may receive:

If shellfish poisoning causes paralysis , you may have to remain in the hospital until your symptoms improve.

Expectations (prognosis):

Fish and shellfish poisonings occur on occasion in the United States. You can protect yourself by avoiding fish and seafood caught in and around the areas of a known red tide, and by avoiding clams, mussels, and oysters during the summer months. If you are poisoned, your long-term outcome is usually quite good. Scombroid Poisoning symptoms usually only last for a few hours after medical treatment has begun. Ciguatera Poisoning and the various Shellfish Poisoning symptoms may last from days to weeks depending on the severity of the poisoning. Only very rarely have serious outcomes or death occurred.

Since these poisons are heat stable, there is no way for the [person who prepares the food to know that their food is contaminated. Therefore, it is very important that your doctor tell the restaurant that their food is contaminated so that they may throw it away before other persons become sick. Your doctor should also contact the Department of Health to make sure that the suppliers providing the contaminated fish are identified, and all possibly contaminated fish from the same lot are destroyed.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org). URAC's accreditation program is the first of its kind, requiring compliance with 53 standards of quality and accountability, verified by independent audit. A.D.A.M. is among the first to achieve this important distinction for online health information and services. Learn more about A.D.A.M.'s editorial process . A.D.A.M. is also a founding member of Hi-Ethics (www.hiethics.com) and subscribes to the principles of the Health on the Net Foundation (www.hon.ch).

The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed physician should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Call 911 for all medical emergencies. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. Copyright 1997-2007 A.D.A.M., Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.

adam.com