South Korea reports 1st fatal Vibrio vulnificus case of the year
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (Director Ji Young-mi) requested special attention to prevent vibriosis sepsis as the first case of vibriosis sepsis occurred on Monday, May 20th this year.
The confirmed patient was a woman in her 70s* who developed leg swelling, pain, and color changes on May 14th and died of cardiac arrest on May 16th while being hospitalized in the emergency room. As a result of the sample test, she was confirmed to have Vibrio sepsis on May 20th.
* Patients with underlying diseases such as hepatitis C, hypertension, and cerebral infarction are currently being investigated through epidemiological investigation, including intake history.
Vibrio septicemia is known to proliferate when the seawater temperature is above 18℃, and is a halophilic bacterium that lives freely in a wide range of coastal marine environments, including seawater, seawater, tidal flats, and fish and shellfish.
Vibrio sepsis begins to occur around May to June every year, and occurs most often in August to September. In 2023, 91.3% of vibrio sepsis patients occurred in August to October.
Vibrio vulnificus can cause disease in those who eat contaminated seafood or have an open wound that is exposed to warm seawater containing the bacteria. Ingestion of Vibrio vulnificus can cause vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain. Vibrio vulnificus can also cause an infection of the skin when open wounds are exposed to warm seawater; these infections may lead to skin breakdown and ulcers.
Healthy individuals typically develop a mild disease; however, Vibrio vulnificus infections can be a serious concern for people who have weakened immune systems, particularly those with chronic liver disease.
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The bacterium can invade the bloodstream, causing a severe and life-threatening illness with symptoms like fever, chills, decreased blood pressure (septic shock) and blistering skin lesions. Vibrio vulnificus bloodstream infections are fatal about 50 percent of the time. A recent study showed that people with these pre-existing medical conditions were 80 times more likely to develop Vibrio vulnificus bloodstream infections than healthy people.