Who needs enemies when you have friends who poison you with pufferfish?
A 59-year-old man was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit at Tuen Mun Hospital last week after his friend cooked him pufferfish for lunch at his home on Sept. 23.
Just two hours later, the man began vomiting and experiencing dizziness, tingling and numbness in his limbs. He went immediately to A&E, where he was transferred to Intensive Care.
The main cause of food poisoning from pufferfish is tetrodotoxin, a potent water-soluble neurotoxin that can affect the central nervous system.
A spokesman for Hong Kong’s Centre for Health Protection explains: “Organs such as the liver, gonads and skin of puffer fish have high concentrations of tetrodotoxin. Being heat-stable, the toxin does not decompose upon cooking, boiling, drying or freezing.
“Tetrodotoxin intoxication can cause problems in respiration or circulation and is potentially fatal. There is no known antidote or antitoxin. The public is advised to avoid purchasing and preparing puffer fish or unknown fish for consumption themselves to prevent tetrodotoxin-related food poisoning,”
The man is now in a stable condition after treatment, although we dare say his friendship with the would-be chef/poisoner is probably still a little shaky.
Photo: R/DV/RS via Flickr
