A doctor examines one of the 46 people hospitalized with suspected ‘banh mi’-linked food poisoning at Huong Hoa Regional General Hospital in Quang Tri Province, north-central Vietnam. Photo: Quang Ha / Tuoi Tre
Huong Hoa Regional General Hospital, located in the province’s Khe Sanh Commune, said on Friday that it admitted the patients between 6:30 am on April 29 and midnight on May 1.
The patients showed similar symptoms, including high fever, frequent diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, fatigue, and signs of dehydration.
All those affected, aged from just over four to 46, said they had eaten banh mi from the same bakery in mountainous Tan Lap Commune.
Most are students aged 11 to 15 from Huong Loc Semi-Boarding Elementary and Secondary School for Ethnic Minorities in Tan Lap Commune, while the rest are local residents.
Nguyen Viet Duc, director of the hospital, said that doctors administered intravenous fluids, oral rehydration therapy, and antibiotics to the patients and were closely monitoring their conditions.
He noted that many patients still have fever, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and fatigue, but no severe cases have been reported so far.
Local authorities have identified people who ate banh mi from the shop and sent those showing food poisoning symptoms, whether mild or severe, to the hospital for examination and treatment.
Ho Thi Thuy Vinh, chairwoman of the Tan Lap administration, said health authorities had collected food samples for testing to determine the cause of the incident.
Commune leaders visited patients in the hospital, and directed relevant agencies to investigate the case and report to higher authorities, she added.
