Botulism is a rare, sometimes lethal neuroparalytic illness. On 2 October 2011, an inmate at prison A developed symptoms compatible with botulism after drinking pruno, an illicit, prison-brewed alcoholic beverage. Additional illnesses were identified within several days. We conducted an investigation to determine the cause and extent of the outbreak.
Eight prisoners developed botulism; all drank pruno made with a potato. Three received mechanical ventilation. Culture of fluid from a sock that inmates reported using to filter the implicated pruno yielded C. botulinum type A. The implicated batch may have been shared between cells during delivery of meal trays. Challenges of the investigation included identifying affected inmates, overcoming inaccuracies in histories, and determining how the illicit beverage was shared. Costs to taxpayers were nearly $500000 in hospital costs alone.
FoodWorld 