Tweet
This is a sampling of the reports of food poisoning cases registered in Hong Kong since January 1st of 2006. I check 2003, 2004, and 2005 and there were not nearly as many outbreaks of food poisoning.
The problem with food poisoning is that H5N1 cases can easily be misdiagnosed as food poisoning. In fact, any case in which a person ate a sick chicken and became infected with H5N1 can be considered a case of food poisoning.
I am not saying any of these outbreaks are H5N1, but the potential cannot be ignored.
http://www.info.gov.hk/dh/new/index.htm
Date Sick Ages Hours before onset
01/03/2006 9 16-60 2-15
01/05/2006 11 10-74 30-60
01/10/2006 12 44-58 27-57
01/16/2006 12 28-56 15-25
01/20/2006 11 17-45 2.5-20.5
01/24/2006 11 40-59 8-56 "Poon Choi"
01/26/2006 11 6-77 3-49
01/27/2006 14 24-50 6-64
01/29/2006 - ? 441 1-86 1-40 "Poon Choi"
02/13/2006 25 20-62 1-50
The reason that I bolded the hours on certain outbreaks is because some people did not show symptoms until more than 2 days after eating.
3 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving nine people.
The affected, comprising two men and seven women aged between 16 and 60, developed abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fever about two to 15 hours after taking dinner in a restaurant in Tuen Mun yesterday (January 2).
Six of them sought medical treatment from the Accident and Emergency Department of Tuen Mun Hospital, two visited general practitioners and one visited the Out patient Department of Pok Oi Hospital. Their symptoms were generally mild. None required hospitalization.
CHP's initial investigations showed that bacterial contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
5 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health today (January 5) called on members of the public to be on guard against food-borne diseases after receiving a report of suspected food poisoning involving 11 people.
The patients, comprising six male and five female aged between 10 and 74, developed abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fever about 30 to 60 hours after taking dinner in a restaurant in Wong Tai Sin on December 30, 2005.
Five of them sought medical treatment from private doctors. Their symptoms were generally mild and did not require hospitalization.
Initial investigations showed that the outbreak might have been caused by bacterial contamination. Further investigation is in progress.
10 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving 12 people.
The affected, comprising 11 men and a woman aged between 44 and 58, developed abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and fever 27 to 57 hours after having lunch in a hotel in Tuen Mun on January 6.
All of them sought medical treatment from general practitioners. Their symptoms were generally mild. None required hospitalization.
CHP's initial investigations showed that bacterial contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
16 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving 12 people.
The affected, all men aged between 28 and 56, developed abdominal pain and diarrhoea about 15 to 25 hours after having lunch in a restaurant in Causeway Bay on January 12.
Two of them sought medical attention from private doctors. One other sought treatment from the Accident and Emergency Department of the Prince of Wales Hospital. Their symptoms were generally mild. None required hospitalization.
CHP's initial investigations showed that bacterial contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
20 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving 11 people.
The affected, two men and nine women aged between 17 and 45, developed abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting about 2.5 to 20.5 hours after having tea buffet in a restaurant in Kowloon Tong on January 18.
Seven of them sought medical attention from the Accident and Emergency Departments of the Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital and Tuen Mun Hospital. Their symptoms were generally mild. None required hospitalization.
CHP's initial investigations showed that bacterial contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
24 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving 11 people today (January 24).
The affected, six women and five men aged between 40 and 59, developed abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea about 8 to 56 hours after consuming "Poon Choi" at home in Tsing Yi on January 20 evening. Initial investigations revealed that the "Poon Choi" was brought from a restaurant in the same district.
Seven of them sought medical attention from private doctors. Their symptoms were generally mild and none required hospitalization.
CHP's initial investigations showed that bacterial or viral contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
Poon Choi (盤菜; pinyin: p?nc?i), also known as Pan Cai or Big Bowl Feast, is a traditional type of Chinese food served in wooden basins instead of the porcelain or metal kind.
Poon Choi includes ingredients such as pork, beef, lamb, chicken, duck, abalone, ginseng, shark fin, fish maw, prawn, crab, dried mushroom, fishballs, squid, dried eel, dried shrimp, pigskin, beancurd and mooli.
Poon Choi is special in the way that it is composed of different layers of many ingredients. It is also eaten layer by layer instead of "stirring everything up", but those who cannot wait will often choose to pick up the juicy radish at the bottom first using shared chopsticks.
It is often served during religious rituals, festivals, special occasions and wedding banquets in open area of villages. From 1990s, Poon Choi became popular among urban dwellers and can also be enjoyed at many Cantonese restaurants in the autumn and winter or on special occasions throughout the year. Some restaurants or providers change the outlook of the poon choi and add some ingredients of fresh shrimp and fresh oyster instead of dried ones. This increases the potential risk of contaimination by bacteria that causes disease. It has to be cooked thoroughly.
It was said that Poon Choi was invented during the late Song Dynasty. When Mongol troops invaded Song China, the young Emperor fled to area around Guangdong and Hong Kong. To serve the Emperor as well as his army, the locals collected all their best food available, cooked it, and put it in wooden washing basins. By doing so Poon Choi was invented.
26 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating three reports of suspected food poisoning involving 11 people today (January 26).
The three groups of affected persons are aged from 6 to 77 and comprised seven male and four female. They developed abdominal pain, diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting and fever about 3 to 49 hours after having dinner in a restaurant in Mong Kok on January 22.
Six of them sought medical attention from private doctors. Their symptoms were generally mild. None required hospitalization.
Initial investigations showed that bacterial contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
27 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving 14 people.
Those affected were 8 males and 6 females aged from 24 to 50. They developed abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and fever within 6 to 64 hours after having dinner at a restaurant in Central on January 21.
Nine of them sought medical treatments from the out-patient clinic of Hong Kong Sanatorium and Hospital and Hong Kong Adventisit Hospital, and also Accident and Emergency Department of Pok Oi Hospital. One consulted a private doctor. Another one admitted to Hong Kong Sanatorium and Hospital is in stable condition.
Investigations are still in progress. Initial investigations suggested that this might be an outbreak of bacteria food poisoning. One stool culture was tested positive for Salmonella.
4 February 2006
A further 63 people in nine groups were found to have felt unwell after consuming ?Poon Choi? on January 29 which was bought from a food premises in Kam Tin, Yuen Long, bringing the total number of people affected so far to 441.
A spokesman for the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health today (February 4) said all of the affected, comprised 201 males and 240 females aged from one to 86, had taken the food on January 29. They developed fever, diarrhoea, abdominal pain and vomiting about one to 40 hours after consumption of the ?Poon Choi?.
Of them, a patient who was previously admitted to St Teresa's Hospital has been discharged. Eighty-eight others consulted private doctors and 88 sought medical treatment from public hospitals.
Stool samples of two of the affected person have been tested positive for vibrio parahaemolyticus (a bacteria causing gastrointestinal symptoms).
13 February 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving 25 people today (February 13).
The affected, comprising 13 men and 12 women aged between 20 and 62, developed abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and fever about one to 50 hours after having lunch or dinner in a staff canteen in Fanling on February 10.
Six of them sought treatment from Prince of Wales Hospital and North District Hospital. Ten others consulted private doctors. Their symptoms were generally mild. None required hospitalization.
CHP's initial investigations showed that bacterial or viral contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
The problem with food poisoning is that H5N1 cases can easily be misdiagnosed as food poisoning. In fact, any case in which a person ate a sick chicken and became infected with H5N1 can be considered a case of food poisoning.
I am not saying any of these outbreaks are H5N1, but the potential cannot be ignored.
http://www.info.gov.hk/dh/new/index.htm
Date Sick Ages Hours before onset
01/03/2006 9 16-60 2-15
01/05/2006 11 10-74 30-60
01/10/2006 12 44-58 27-57
01/16/2006 12 28-56 15-25
01/20/2006 11 17-45 2.5-20.5
01/24/2006 11 40-59 8-56 "Poon Choi"
01/26/2006 11 6-77 3-49
01/27/2006 14 24-50 6-64
01/29/2006 - ? 441 1-86 1-40 "Poon Choi"
02/13/2006 25 20-62 1-50
The reason that I bolded the hours on certain outbreaks is because some people did not show symptoms until more than 2 days after eating.
3 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving nine people.
The affected, comprising two men and seven women aged between 16 and 60, developed abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fever about two to 15 hours after taking dinner in a restaurant in Tuen Mun yesterday (January 2).
Six of them sought medical treatment from the Accident and Emergency Department of Tuen Mun Hospital, two visited general practitioners and one visited the Out patient Department of Pok Oi Hospital. Their symptoms were generally mild. None required hospitalization.
CHP's initial investigations showed that bacterial contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
5 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health today (January 5) called on members of the public to be on guard against food-borne diseases after receiving a report of suspected food poisoning involving 11 people.
The patients, comprising six male and five female aged between 10 and 74, developed abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fever about 30 to 60 hours after taking dinner in a restaurant in Wong Tai Sin on December 30, 2005.
Five of them sought medical treatment from private doctors. Their symptoms were generally mild and did not require hospitalization.
Initial investigations showed that the outbreak might have been caused by bacterial contamination. Further investigation is in progress.
10 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving 12 people.
The affected, comprising 11 men and a woman aged between 44 and 58, developed abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and fever 27 to 57 hours after having lunch in a hotel in Tuen Mun on January 6.
All of them sought medical treatment from general practitioners. Their symptoms were generally mild. None required hospitalization.
CHP's initial investigations showed that bacterial contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
16 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving 12 people.
The affected, all men aged between 28 and 56, developed abdominal pain and diarrhoea about 15 to 25 hours after having lunch in a restaurant in Causeway Bay on January 12.
Two of them sought medical attention from private doctors. One other sought treatment from the Accident and Emergency Department of the Prince of Wales Hospital. Their symptoms were generally mild. None required hospitalization.
CHP's initial investigations showed that bacterial contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
20 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving 11 people.
The affected, two men and nine women aged between 17 and 45, developed abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting about 2.5 to 20.5 hours after having tea buffet in a restaurant in Kowloon Tong on January 18.
Seven of them sought medical attention from the Accident and Emergency Departments of the Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital and Tuen Mun Hospital. Their symptoms were generally mild. None required hospitalization.
CHP's initial investigations showed that bacterial contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
24 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving 11 people today (January 24).
The affected, six women and five men aged between 40 and 59, developed abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea about 8 to 56 hours after consuming "Poon Choi" at home in Tsing Yi on January 20 evening. Initial investigations revealed that the "Poon Choi" was brought from a restaurant in the same district.
Seven of them sought medical attention from private doctors. Their symptoms were generally mild and none required hospitalization.
CHP's initial investigations showed that bacterial or viral contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
Poon Choi (盤菜; pinyin: p?nc?i), also known as Pan Cai or Big Bowl Feast, is a traditional type of Chinese food served in wooden basins instead of the porcelain or metal kind.
Poon Choi includes ingredients such as pork, beef, lamb, chicken, duck, abalone, ginseng, shark fin, fish maw, prawn, crab, dried mushroom, fishballs, squid, dried eel, dried shrimp, pigskin, beancurd and mooli.
Poon Choi is special in the way that it is composed of different layers of many ingredients. It is also eaten layer by layer instead of "stirring everything up", but those who cannot wait will often choose to pick up the juicy radish at the bottom first using shared chopsticks.
It is often served during religious rituals, festivals, special occasions and wedding banquets in open area of villages. From 1990s, Poon Choi became popular among urban dwellers and can also be enjoyed at many Cantonese restaurants in the autumn and winter or on special occasions throughout the year. Some restaurants or providers change the outlook of the poon choi and add some ingredients of fresh shrimp and fresh oyster instead of dried ones. This increases the potential risk of contaimination by bacteria that causes disease. It has to be cooked thoroughly.
It was said that Poon Choi was invented during the late Song Dynasty. When Mongol troops invaded Song China, the young Emperor fled to area around Guangdong and Hong Kong. To serve the Emperor as well as his army, the locals collected all their best food available, cooked it, and put it in wooden washing basins. By doing so Poon Choi was invented.
26 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating three reports of suspected food poisoning involving 11 people today (January 26).
The three groups of affected persons are aged from 6 to 77 and comprised seven male and four female. They developed abdominal pain, diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting and fever about 3 to 49 hours after having dinner in a restaurant in Mong Kok on January 22.
Six of them sought medical attention from private doctors. Their symptoms were generally mild. None required hospitalization.
Initial investigations showed that bacterial contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.
27 January 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving 14 people.
Those affected were 8 males and 6 females aged from 24 to 50. They developed abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and fever within 6 to 64 hours after having dinner at a restaurant in Central on January 21.
Nine of them sought medical treatments from the out-patient clinic of Hong Kong Sanatorium and Hospital and Hong Kong Adventisit Hospital, and also Accident and Emergency Department of Pok Oi Hospital. One consulted a private doctor. Another one admitted to Hong Kong Sanatorium and Hospital is in stable condition.
Investigations are still in progress. Initial investigations suggested that this might be an outbreak of bacteria food poisoning. One stool culture was tested positive for Salmonella.
4 February 2006
A further 63 people in nine groups were found to have felt unwell after consuming ?Poon Choi? on January 29 which was bought from a food premises in Kam Tin, Yuen Long, bringing the total number of people affected so far to 441.
A spokesman for the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health today (February 4) said all of the affected, comprised 201 males and 240 females aged from one to 86, had taken the food on January 29. They developed fever, diarrhoea, abdominal pain and vomiting about one to 40 hours after consumption of the ?Poon Choi?.
Of them, a patient who was previously admitted to St Teresa's Hospital has been discharged. Eighty-eight others consulted private doctors and 88 sought medical treatment from public hospitals.
Stool samples of two of the affected person have been tested positive for vibrio parahaemolyticus (a bacteria causing gastrointestinal symptoms).
13 February 2006
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating a report of suspected food poisoning involving 25 people today (February 13).
The affected, comprising 13 men and 12 women aged between 20 and 62, developed abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and fever about one to 50 hours after having lunch or dinner in a staff canteen in Fanling on February 10.
Six of them sought treatment from Prince of Wales Hospital and North District Hospital. Ten others consulted private doctors. Their symptoms were generally mild. None required hospitalization.
CHP's initial investigations showed that bacterial or viral contamination could be the likely cause for the outbreak. Further investigation is in progress.