Chlorophyllum molybdites poisoning on Reunion Island

Abstract

In France, mushroom picking is part of the culture. The practice is not without risk, as around 1300 people are poisoned each year by eating wild mushrooms on the French mainland. However, this practice is not part of local culture on Reunion Island, a French territory located in the Indian Ocean. Indeed, there are practically no reports of mushroom poisoning on Reunion Island. Here we describe, through a retrospective study, cases of mushroom poisoning recorded in the Indian Ocean toxicosurveillance system database from 2020 to 2021. Overall, 19 people were poisoned following wild mushroom ingestion on Reunion Island: 15 in 2020 and 4 in 2021. Six events were recorded: the majority of poisonings involved clusters (n = 5) during a shared meal (pan-fried), only one case was single mushroom poisoning by ingesting a raw mushroom. Of all patients, 15 cases presented a gastrointestinal irritant syndrome (latency between 30 min and 3 h). Chlorophyllum molybdites was positively identified by mycologists in 4 cases, suspected by emergency doctor in 1 case and in one self-declared case, Volvariella volvacea was consumed. Poisoning following ingestion of wild mushrooms does occur on Reunion Island, and Chlorophyllum molybdites is the main culprit.

Keywords: Gastrointestinal symptoms; Indian ocean; Mushroom poisoning; Mushrooms; Toxicosurveillance.