Binh Thuan General Hospital, located in Binh Thuan Ward, Lam Dong Province, was providing emergency care and treatment to all 10 patients suspected of suffering from pufferfish poisoning, a hospital official said on the evening of November 8.
The emergency department at Binh Thuan General Hospital, where the suspected poisoning victims are being treated after eating pufferfish (Photo: Nguyen Tuan).
Initial reports said the patients were admitted on the afternoon of the same day with symptoms including abdominal pain, tongue numbness and persistent vomiting. Doctors immediately administered intravenous fluids, treatment for poisoning and emergency medical support.
One patient developed severe symptoms and required intubation to support breathing. Three others also showed signs of serious poisoning, including persistent vomiting, and were receiving intensive treatment and respiratory support from the hospital's toxicology specialists.
According to relatives, all 10 patients lived in the Phu Hai residential quarter of Phu Thuy Ward. They had eaten marine pufferfish together at lunchtime after someone who had gone fishing brought the fish home. The families subsequently prepared the fish themselves for consumption.
All 10 patients remain under close medical observation and emergency treatment at Binh Thuan General Hospital.
This is not the first case of poisoning linked to pufferfish consumption. Doctors warn that marine pufferfish contain highly dangerous toxins that can cause severe poisoning and even be life-threatening.
Authorities and medical professionals strongly advise the public not to eat pufferfish under any circumstances, including freshly caught specimens.
