Botulism from home-canned bamboo shoots--Nan Province, Thailand, March 2006.

On March 15, 2006, multiple persons with symptoms of nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and dyspnea visited the emergency department at Baan Luang district hospital in Nan province, Thailand; one person required mechanical ventilation. A team from the Bureau of Epidemiology, Department of Disease Control, Thailand Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) initiated an investigation, in collaboration with the Surveillance and Rapid Response Team from Baan Luang district. This report summarizes the investigation conducted during March 15-26, which determined that the outbreak was caused by foodborne botulism from home-canned bamboo shoots and affected 163 rural villagers who shared a common meal. The last case was identified March 21; no further cases of foodborne botulism have been identified in the region.