wound botulism

The mortality rate for wound botulism is about 10%.

Wounds infected with toxin-producing bacteria result in wound botulism.

Wound botulism is when the toxin strikes an infected wound.

Epidemiology Foodborne, infant, wound botulism.

Wound botulism results from the contamination of a wound with the bacteria, which then secrete the toxin into the bloodstream.

Wound botulism occurs when C. botulinum spores germinate and produce toxin in a contaminated wound or abscess.

Of these, approximately 25 percent are food borne, 72 percent are infant botulism, and the rest are wound botulism, frequently associated with intravenous drug use.

Infant and wound botulism both result from infection with spores, which subsequently germinate, resulting in production of toxin and the symptoms of botulism.

If diagnosed early, foodborne and wound botulism can be treated by inducing passive immunity with a horse-derived antitoxin, which blocks the action of toxin circulating in the blood.

According to the CDC, there has been an increased incidence of wound botulism particularly among the intravenous drug users where a degree of pathogen/antibiotic interfacing may have taken place.

Wound botulism can be prevented by promptly seeking medical care for infected wounds, and by avoiding punctures by unsterile things such as needles used for street drug injections.

The number of cases of food borne and infant botulism has changed little in recent years, but wound botulism has increased because of the use of black tar heroin, especially in California.

Infant botulism is a toxico-infection where the gastro-intestinal tract is colonized by spores prior to the protective intestinal bacterial flora having developed and wound botulism is found most often among substance abusers when spores enter a wound under the skin, and, in the absence of oxygen are activated and release toxin.