Treatments are largely supportive, but mortality is low. Ciguatera was responsible for about half of all reported outbreaks of seafood intoxications in 1978-1987. The disease is most common (endemic) in the Caribbean and Pacific islands, with some outbreaks in southern Florida and sporadic cases in other states due to imported fish or tourist travel to endemic areas.
Scombroid poisoning is due to histamine produced by bacteria multiplying on certain fish that are mishandled after capture, and illnesses are widely reported from different states.Ĭiguatera is a sometimes severe disease caused by consuming certain species of fish in tropical waters usually associated with islands or reefs. Except for scombroid fish poisoning, natural intoxications are both highly regional and species associated, and toxins are present in the fish or shellfish at the time of capture. Naturally, toxic fish and shellfish cannot be distinguished from nontoxic animals by sensory inspection, and the toxins are not destroyed by normal cooking or processing.
Other intoxications, including puffer fish poisoning and neurotoxic (brevetoxic) shellfish poisoning, were reported earlier, and diarrhetic shellfish poisoning and amnesic shellfish poisoning are prospective risks that should be anticipated. Incidents of illness due to naturally occurring seafood toxins reported to the Centers for Disease Control in the period 1978-1987 were limited to ciguatera, scombroid fish poisoning, and paralytic shellfish poisoning.