Scombroid poisoning among prisoners of a prison in Johor, Malaysia
Scombroid poisoning is a food poisoning caused by ingesting contaminated fish from the Scombridae family, which presented as an allergic reaction due to over-histamine release. On 15th of April 2019, Kluang District Health Office received notification of a suspected food poisoning outbreak among pri...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine
2024
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| Online Access: | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/119142/ http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/119142/1/119142.pdf |
| _version_ | 1848867885412253696 |
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| author | Dapari, Rahmat Ab Razak, Muhamad Farhan Ahmad Bahuri, Nor Hana Subahir, Mohamad Nizam Ibrahim, Farha Tok, Peter Seah Keng Toha, Haidar Rizal Hassan, Mohd Rohaizat Hod, Rozita Mohd Ghazali, Qistina Ahmad Zamzuri, Mohd ‘Ammar Ihsan Syed Abdul Rahim, Syed Sharizman |
| author_facet | Dapari, Rahmat Ab Razak, Muhamad Farhan Ahmad Bahuri, Nor Hana Subahir, Mohamad Nizam Ibrahim, Farha Tok, Peter Seah Keng Toha, Haidar Rizal Hassan, Mohd Rohaizat Hod, Rozita Mohd Ghazali, Qistina Ahmad Zamzuri, Mohd ‘Ammar Ihsan Syed Abdul Rahim, Syed Sharizman |
| author_sort | Dapari, Rahmat |
| building | UPM Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Scombroid poisoning is a food poisoning caused by ingesting contaminated fish from the Scombridae family, which presented as an allergic reaction due to over-histamine release. On 15th of April 2019, Kluang District Health Office received notification of a suspected food poisoning outbreak among prisoners in Johor, Malaysia following several of them experiencing allergic reactions after consumption of fish during dinner. Thus, this study aimed to describe the epidemiological characteristics of the outbreak, determine the extent and causative agent and make recommendations on the control and preventive measures. In this study, a case is delineated as a prisoner confined at Kluang Prison A displaying symptoms of scombroid poisoning—urticaria, respiratory distress, headache, eye redness, fever, or diarrhoea—after consuming fried ikan tongkol and mackerel during dinner on April 15, 2019, from 16:30 to 22:00 hours. Data on demographic characteristics, the onset of food poisoning and allergic symptoms, critical control point assessment of raw fish, food intake history and food preparation method were obtained. Of 3156 prisoners 30 (0.95% attack rate) were infected during this outbreak. Five prisoners were referred to the hospital and 3 of them were required admission. Predominant clinical features were urticaria (96.7%), shortness of breath (66.7%), eye redness (56.7%), fever (46.7%) and diarrhoea (36.7%). Moreover, the study revealed that fried mackerel fish has a high histamine level (430.3 mg/kg). The poisoning occurs due to a breach in critical control point during fish preparation. The outbreak was declared free on 16 April 2019. The scombroid poisoning outbreak in Kluang Prison A was conclusively attributed to spoiled mackerel fish. The investigation revealed significant lapses in food cleanliness within the prison, with a notable contribution to cross-contamination by food handlers. The findings underscore the importance of collaborative efforts among the prison administration, prisoners, and health officers to prevent future incidents of food poisoning. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-15T14:43:36Z |
| format | Article |
| id | upm-119142 |
| institution | Universiti Putra Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-15T14:43:36Z |
| publishDate | 2024 |
| publisher | Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | upm-1191422025-08-06T07:59:28Z http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/119142/ Scombroid poisoning among prisoners of a prison in Johor, Malaysia Dapari, Rahmat Ab Razak, Muhamad Farhan Ahmad Bahuri, Nor Hana Subahir, Mohamad Nizam Ibrahim, Farha Tok, Peter Seah Keng Toha, Haidar Rizal Hassan, Mohd Rohaizat Hod, Rozita Mohd Ghazali, Qistina Ahmad Zamzuri, Mohd ‘Ammar Ihsan Syed Abdul Rahim, Syed Sharizman Scombroid poisoning is a food poisoning caused by ingesting contaminated fish from the Scombridae family, which presented as an allergic reaction due to over-histamine release. On 15th of April 2019, Kluang District Health Office received notification of a suspected food poisoning outbreak among prisoners in Johor, Malaysia following several of them experiencing allergic reactions after consumption of fish during dinner. Thus, this study aimed to describe the epidemiological characteristics of the outbreak, determine the extent and causative agent and make recommendations on the control and preventive measures. In this study, a case is delineated as a prisoner confined at Kluang Prison A displaying symptoms of scombroid poisoning—urticaria, respiratory distress, headache, eye redness, fever, or diarrhoea—after consuming fried ikan tongkol and mackerel during dinner on April 15, 2019, from 16:30 to 22:00 hours. Data on demographic characteristics, the onset of food poisoning and allergic symptoms, critical control point assessment of raw fish, food intake history and food preparation method were obtained. Of 3156 prisoners 30 (0.95% attack rate) were infected during this outbreak. Five prisoners were referred to the hospital and 3 of them were required admission. Predominant clinical features were urticaria (96.7%), shortness of breath (66.7%), eye redness (56.7%), fever (46.7%) and diarrhoea (36.7%). Moreover, the study revealed that fried mackerel fish has a high histamine level (430.3 mg/kg). The poisoning occurs due to a breach in critical control point during fish preparation. The outbreak was declared free on 16 April 2019. The scombroid poisoning outbreak in Kluang Prison A was conclusively attributed to spoiled mackerel fish. The investigation revealed significant lapses in food cleanliness within the prison, with a notable contribution to cross-contamination by food handlers. The findings underscore the importance of collaborative efforts among the prison administration, prisoners, and health officers to prevent future incidents of food poisoning. Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine 2024 Article PeerReviewed text en http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/119142/1/119142.pdf Dapari, Rahmat and Ab Razak, Muhamad Farhan and Ahmad Bahuri, Nor Hana and Subahir, Mohamad Nizam and Ibrahim, Farha and Tok, Peter Seah Keng and Toha, Haidar Rizal and Hassan, Mohd Rohaizat and Hod, Rozita and Mohd Ghazali, Qistina and Ahmad Zamzuri, Mohd ‘Ammar Ihsan and Syed Abdul Rahim, Syed Sharizman (2024) Scombroid poisoning among prisoners of a prison in Johor, Malaysia. Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine, 24 (1). pp. 232-238. ISSN 1675-0306; eISSN: 2590-3829 10.37268/mjphm/vol.24/no.1 |
| spellingShingle | Dapari, Rahmat Ab Razak, Muhamad Farhan Ahmad Bahuri, Nor Hana Subahir, Mohamad Nizam Ibrahim, Farha Tok, Peter Seah Keng Toha, Haidar Rizal Hassan, Mohd Rohaizat Hod, Rozita Mohd Ghazali, Qistina Ahmad Zamzuri, Mohd ‘Ammar Ihsan Syed Abdul Rahim, Syed Sharizman Scombroid poisoning among prisoners of a prison in Johor, Malaysia |
| title | Scombroid poisoning among prisoners of a prison in Johor, Malaysia |
| title_full | Scombroid poisoning among prisoners of a prison in Johor, Malaysia |
| title_fullStr | Scombroid poisoning among prisoners of a prison in Johor, Malaysia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Scombroid poisoning among prisoners of a prison in Johor, Malaysia |
| title_short | Scombroid poisoning among prisoners of a prison in Johor, Malaysia |
| title_sort | scombroid poisoning among prisoners of a prison in johor, malaysia |
| url | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/119142/ http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/119142/ http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/119142/1/119142.pdf |