Sargassum seaweed health menace in the Caribbean: clinical characteristics of a population exposed to hydrogen sulfide during the 2018 massive stranding

Abstract

Background

Since 2011, there have been ongoing massive unexplained increases of sargassum seaweed strandings along the coastlines of Caribbean countries. The objective of our study was to describe the clinical characteristics of patients exposed to noxious emissions of decomposing sargassum seaweed.

Methods

This observational study included patients from January 2018 to December 2018 for complaints attributed to decomposing sargassum seaweed. History and geographical characteristics of sargassum seaweed strandings as well as detection of ambient air hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) levels were documented during the inclusion period.

Findings

A total of 154 patients were included. Mean exposure period was 3 months. Neurological (80%), digestive (77%) and respiratory (69%) disorders were the most frequent reasons for medical visit. Temporal distribution of medical visits was related to history of strandings. Geographical origins of patients were consistent with the most impacted areas of strandings as well as the most elevated ambient air H₂S levels.

Interpretation

The toxicological syndrome induced by sargassum seaweed exposure is close to the toxidrome associated with acute H₂S exposure in the range of 0–10 ppm. Our study suggests that patients living in massive stranding areas may be exposed to H₂S > 5 ppm for 50 days per year.

Keywords:

• Sargassum seaweed
• caribbean
• hydrogen sulfide
• toxicological syndrome

Author contributions

Dabor Resiere (DR); Hossein Mehdaoui (HM); Jonathan Florentin (JF); Papa Gueye (PG); Thierry Lebrun (TL); Alain Blateau (AB); Jerome Viguier (JV); Ruddy Valentino (RV); Yannick Brouste (YB); Bruno megarbane (BM); André Cabie(AC); Rishika banydeen (RB); Remi Neviere (RN)

• RN wrote the manuscript with support from RB, DR and HM.

• DR, HM, RB, RN contributed substantially to the conception and design of the study

• DB, HM, JF, PG, TL, AB, JV, RV, YB contributed substantially to the acquisition of data, analysis and interpretation.

• RB and HM performed statistical analyses.

• BM and AC contributed substantially to the interpretation of the data.

• All authors drafted or provided critical revision of the article.

• All authors provided final approval of the version to publish.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors. The authors acknowledge no financial interest or benefit that has arisen from the direct applications of the present research.

Part of the present work has been previously published as a congress abstract at the 2020 congress of the French Intensive Care Society (Réanimation 2020, the French Intensive Care Society International Congress). The abstract was published (abstract number F-66) in the congress’s proceedings in the Annals of Intensive Care journal (Resiere et al. Ann Intensive Care. 2020; 10 (Suppl 1); 16-F066).

Additional information

Funding

The current research work has been supported by grants (2018) from the University Hospital of Martinique and the Regional Health Agency (ARS) of Martinique. They funded necessary human and logistical resources, which contributed towards data collection and analysis.