BOTULISM: ETIOLOGY, CLINICAL PRESENTATION, TREATMENT, AND PREVENTION

Abstract

Botulism is a severe disease that leads to flaccid paralysis, caused by the botulinum neurotoxin, commonly known as botulinum toxin. This toxin is produced by anaerobic bacteria of the Clostridium genus, primarily Clostridium botulinum, and in rare cases, C. butyricum and C. baratii. There are seven serotypes of botulinum toxin (A–G), but the most pathogenic for humans are types A, B, and E, with type F being involved in rare cases. Other serotypes predominantly affect animals and birds, also causing flaccid paralysis. Most Clostridium strains synthesize only one type of neurotoxin. Despite differences between serotypes (A, B, E, and F), their pathogenic mechanism of action in the human body remains identical. Botulism is not transmitted from person to person. Infection occurs through the consumption of contaminated food, and more rarely, through inhalation of the toxin or its entry into the body through other means. The disease may also develop when C. botulinum colonizes the intestine or infects wound surfaces, leading to local toxin production and subsequent systemic spread.