The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is today (May 11) investigating two food poisoning clusters affecting seven persons, and reminded the public to maintain personal, food and environmental hygiene to prevent food-borne diseases.
The first cluster comprised one man and four women aged 29 to 64 who developed fever, abdominal pain and diarrhoea about 10 to 18 hours after having dinner at a restaurant in Prince Edward on April 29. Three of them have sought medical advice and one has been discharged upon hospitalisation. Separately, the stool specimen collected from one patient tested positive for Salmonella enteritidis upon laboratory testing.
The second cluster comprised two women both aged 35 who developed fever, abdominal pain, diarrhoea and vomiting about 14 to 21 hours after having dinner at the same restaurant on April 30. Both patients of the second cluster have sought medical advice and no hospitalisation is required.
All patients are in a stable condition. The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department has been alerted to the incident and the CHP's investigations are ongoing.
To prevent food-borne diseases, members of the public are reminded to maintain personal, food and environmental hygiene at all times. When dining out:
- Patronise only reliable and licensed restaurants;
- Avoid eating raw seafood;
- Be a discerning consumer in choosing cold dishes, including sashimi, sushi and raw oysters, at a buffet;
- Ensure food is thoroughly cooked before eating during a hot pot or barbecue meal;
- Handle raw and cooked foods carefully and separate them completely during the cooking process;
- Use two sets of chopsticks and eating utensils to handle raw and cooked food;
- Do not patronise illegal food hawkers;
- Drink boiled water;
- Do not try to use salt, vinegar, wine and wasabi to kill bacteria as they are not effective; and
- Always wash hands before eating and after going to the toilet.
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