Infantile Botulism

Infantile botulism is caused by Clostridium botulinum, which is an anaerobic spore-forming, gram-positive bacillus. It can be found in the soil, water, and air with a lethal toxin dosage as low as 1 mcg/kg. Botulism infection can occur in five different ways:

1. Foodborne botulism: When a person ingests the preformed toxin.

2. Infant botulism: This has occurred in a small population of infants (children under the age of 1 year) who have C. botulinum colonization in their gastrointestinal tract.

3. Wound botulism: When infected wounds contain C. botulinum, and they secrete the toxin.

4. Iatrogenic botulism: This occurs when cosmetic or therapeutic procedures that use the C. botulinum toxin cause systemic intoxication.

5. Intestinal colonization: When a person over the age of 1 year harbors the C. botulinum toxin within the gastrointestinal tract (infantile botulism in children and adults).

Even though there are multiple ways to contact botulism, only three main serotypes are responsible for all of these infections:

1. Type A: Predominantly found west of the Mississippi River

2. Type B: Predominantly found east of the Mississippi River

3. Type E: Found in the Pacific Northwest with a preponderance in Alaska

In the USA, there are about 100 cases of infantile botulism reported each year. About 20% are linked to the consumption of raw honey. The infants affected are usually from immigrant families and the source of the spores in the majority of affected infants remains unknown. Experts suggest that the spores may be from contaminated soil and dust from nearby construction facilities. Other potential sources of botulism include the consumption of powdered milk, natural sweeteners, corn syrup, and medicinal herbs.