Botulism Type E Outbreak Associated with Eating a Beached Whale, Alaska

We report an outbreak of botulism that occurred in July 2002 in a group of 12 Alaskan Yu’pik Eskimos who ate blubber and skin from a beached beluga whale. Botulism death rates among Alaska Natives have declined in the last 20 years, yet incidence has increased.

Bibliographic Details
Published in:Emerging Infectious Diseases
Main Authors: Joseph B. Mclaughlin, Jeremy Sobel, Tracey Lynn, Elizabeth Funk, John P. Middaugh
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2004
Subjects:
R
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.3201/eid1009.040131
https://doaj.org/article/e62d7e023afc44828402038eee987319
Description
Summary:We report an outbreak of botulism that occurred in July 2002 in a group of 12 Alaskan Yu’pik Eskimos who ate blubber and skin from a beached beluga whale. Botulism death rates among Alaska Natives have declined in the last 20 years, yet incidence has increased.