Two local men were infected with Vibrio vulnificus in Macau, according to the Health Bureau’s statement on Friday.
The first case is a male resident with a history of hypertension, who was accidentally injured by a fish fin on his left index finger while swimming in Coloane’s Cheoc Van beach (“Bamboo Bay”) last month, the statement said.
The man developed swelling and pain on his left index finger and fever, after which he sought treatment at the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre, the statement said, adding that the swelling and pain extended to his left palm the next day and he was diagnosed as having a necrotic soft tissue infection, and the wound secretion was later confirmed to be Vibrio vulnificus.
In the second case, the patient was a male resident who walked along Coloane’s Hac Sa (“Black Sand”) beach last month and was accidentally injured by a fish fin, after which he developed fever and pain in his left foot which had swollen, the wound secretion was later confirmed to be Vibrio vulnificus
After treatment, the patients’ conditions have stabilised, the statement said.
According to the Hong Kong Centre for Health Protection, Vibrio vulnificus is a Gram-negative bacteria that is present naturally in warm seawater. It may cause infections in people who have an open wound exposed to seawater and in those who consume raw or undercooked seafood contaminated with the bacteria.
Wound infection with Vibrio vulnificus may result in necrotising fasciitis (commonly known as “flesh-eating infection”), which is a serious bacterial infection of the soft tissue and fascia (a sheath of tissue covering the muscle), the statement pointed out, adding that it can lead to tissue destruction and can be fatal, with the fatality rate of vibrio vulnificus-associated necrotising fasciitis being about 20 to 30 percent.
Consuming food that is contaminated with Vibrio vulnificus may occasionally cause fever, diarrhoea, vomiting and abdominal pain, the statement said, adding that people with underlying medical conditions, especially liver diseases, Vibrio vulnificus can infect the bloodstream typically causing fever, chills, decreased blood pressure and blistering skin lesions.
To prevent vibrio vulnificus infection, members of the public should clean wounds immediately and cover them properly with waterproof adhesive dressings until healed, and avoid allowing wounds to come into contact with seawater or raw seafood, the statement said.
The statement also reminds members of the public to avoid skin contact with dirty water when visiting a wet market, and be careful with sharp parts of seafood, such as fish fins, shrimp heads and crabs to prevent cuts.
