What are the symptoms of Red Tide poisoning?
Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning, or PSP, is a life-threatening syndrome, and the onset of symptoms is rapid, usually within two hours of consumption. Symptoms include tingling, burning, numbness, drowsiness, incoherent speech, and respiratory paralysis. Duration of effects is a few days in non-lethal cases. The most severe cases result in respiratory arrest within 24 hours of consumption of the toxic shellfish. If the patient is not breathing or if a pulse is not detected, artificial respiration and CPR may be needed as first aid. Although there is no antidote, supportive therapy and treatment is usually adequate, and survivors recover fully. PSP is prevented by large-scale proactive monitoring programs (assessing toxin levels in filter feeding mollusks such as mussels, oysters, clams, and/or scallops) and rapid closures to harvest of suspect or demonstrated toxic areas.
