Botulism Trivia Quiz Questions With Answers

Trivia quiz questions with answers about botulism.

Botulism Trivia Quiz Questions With Answers

What is botulism?
A: Botulism is a rare and potentially fatal illness caused by a toxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum.

The disease begins with what symptoms?
A: Weakness, blurred vision, feeling tired, and trouble speaking.

This may then be followed by weakness of what?
A: The arms, chest muscles, and legs.

What other symptoms may occur?
A: Vomiting, swelling of the abdomen, and diarrhea.

The disease does not usually affect what?
A: Consciousness or cause a fever.

The bacterial spores which cause botulism are common in what?
A: Both soil and water.

They produce the botulinum toxin when exposed to what?
A: Low oxygen levels and certain temperatures.

Food borne botulism happens when food containing what is eaten.
A: The toxin.

Infant botulism happens when the bacteria develops in what?
A: The intestines and releases the toxin.

This typically only occurs in children less than how old?
A: Less than six months old, as protective mechanisms develop after that time.

Wound botulism is found most often among those who do what?
A: Inject street drugs.

In this situation, spores enter a wound, and in the absence of oxygen do what?
A: Release the toxin.

It is not passed how?
A: Directly between people.

The diagnosis is confirmed by finding what?
A: The toxin or bacteria in the person in question.

Prevention is primarily by proper what?
A: Food preparation.

The toxin, though not the organism, is destroyed by heating doing what?
A: By heating it to more than 85 °C (185 °F) for longer than 5 minutes.

Honey can contain the organism, and for this reason, honey should not be fed to whom?
A: Children under 12 months.

Treatment is with what?
A: An antitoxin.

In those who lose their ability to breathe on their own, mechanical ventilation may be necessary for how long?
A: For months.

Antibiotics may be used for what?
A: Wound botulism.

Death occurs in what percentage of people?
A: 5 to 10%.

Botulism also affects many other what?
A: Animals.

Where did the word botulism come from?
A: The word is from Latin, botulus, meaning sausage.

Early descriptions of botulism date from how far back in time?
A: At least as far back as 1793 in Germany.

The muscle weakness of botulism characteristically starts in the muscles supplied by what?
A: The cranial nerves.

What are the cranial nerves?
A: A group of twelve nerves that control eye movements, the facial muscles and the muscles controlling chewing and swallowing.

In addition to affecting the voluntary muscles, it can also cause disruptions in the what?
A: The autonomic nervous system.

This is experienced as what?
A: A dry mouth and throat (due to decreased production of saliva), postural hypotension (decreased blood pressure on standing, with resultant lightheadedness and risk of blackouts), and eventually constipation (due to decreased forward movement of intestinal contents).
The weakness then spreads to what?
A: The arms and legs.

Severe botulism leads to reduced movement of the muscles of what?
A: Respiration, and hence problems with gas exchange.

This may be experienced as dyspnea (difficulty breathing), but when severe can lead to respiratory failure, due to the buildup of what?
A: Un-exhaled carbon dioxide and its resultant depressant effect on the brain.

This may lead to respiratory compromise and what if untreated?
A: Death.

Infant botulism (also referred to as floppy baby syndrome) was first recognized when?
A: In 1976, and is the most common form of botulism in the United States.

When are infants susceptible to infant botulism?
A: In the first year of life, with more than 90% of cases occurring in infants younger than six months.

Infant botulism results from what?
A: The ingestion of the C. botulinum spores, and subsequent colonization of the small intestine.

The infant gut may be colonized when the composition of the intestinal microflora (normal flora) is insufficient to do what?
A: To competitively inhibit the growth of C. botulinum and levels of bile acids are lower than later in life.

The growth of the spores releases botulinum toxin, which is then absorbed into what?
A: The bloodstream and taken throughout the body, causing paralysis by blocking the release of acetylcholine at the neuromuscular junction.

Typical symptoms of infant botulism include what?
A: Constipation, lethargy, weakness, difficulty feeding and an altered cry, often progressing to a complete descending flaccid paralysis.

Although constipation is usually the first symptom of infant botulism, it is commonly what?
A: Overlooked.

Honey is a known dietary reservoir of what?
A: C. botulinum spores and has been linked to infant botulism.

Most cases of infant botulism, however, are thought to be caused by acquiring the spores from what?
A: The natural environment.

Clostridium botulinum is a ubiquitous what?
A: Soil-dwelling bacterium.

Many infant botulism patients have been demonstrated to live near what?
A: A construction site or an area of soil disturbance.

Infant botulism has been reported in how many of the 50 US states?
A: 49, (all save for Rhode Island), and cases have been recognized in 26 countries on five continents.

Infant botulism has no long-term what?
A: Side effects, but can be complicated by hospital-acquired infections.

However, in the past 50 years, the proportion of patients with botulism who die has fallen from about 50% to how much due to improved supportive care?
A: 7%.

Botulinum toxin is one of the most powerful known toxins: how much is lethal to humans when inhaled?
A: About one microgram.

The adult form of infant botulism is termed what?
A: Adult intestinal toxemia, and is exceedingly rare.

What is the most common cause of food-borne botulism?
A: Toxin that is produced by the bacterium in containers of food that have been improperly preserved.

Food-borne botulism results from contaminated food in which C. botulinum spores have been allowed to do what?
A: Germinate in low-oxygen conditions.

This typically occurs in what?
A: Home-canned food substances and fermented uncooked dishes.

Symptoms usually appear how long after eating?
A: 12–36 hours, but can also appear within 6 hours to 10 days.

Botulism has occurred after cosmetic use of what?
A: Inappropriate strengths of Botox.

There are eight serological varieties of the bacterium denoted by what?
A: The letters A to H.

The toxin from all of these acts in the same way and produces similar symptoms: the motor nerve endings are prevented from doing what?
A: Releasing acetylcholine, causing flaccid paralysis.

In October 2013, scientists released news of the discovery of what?
A: Type H, the first new botulism neurotoxin found in forty years.

However, further studies showed type H to be a what?
A: A chimeric toxin composed of parts of types F and A (FA).