On May 4, Director Le Quang Trung of the Dong Nai Department of Health announced that three children who had fallen seriously ill after eating Bang bread in Dong Nai had tested positive for E. coli bacteria. Further test results would be available the following day. The Department of Health will have a report on whether the E. coli bacteria found in the blood tests match the food samples or not on May 6.
E. coli bacteria are commonly found in fresh produce, beef, fresh milk, juice, cheese, raw fruits, and vegetables. Symptoms of E. coli infection include nausea, vomiting, and watery or bloody diarrhea, with the disease typically appearing 3-4 days after consuming contaminated food. Young children and the elderly are more susceptible to serious complications, such as hemolytic uremic syndrome, which can lead to kidney failure.
The authorities have reported a total of 530 suspected cases of poisoning from consuming Bang bread in Dong Nai, with an increase of 80 cases from the previous day. Most new patients have mild symptoms and are being treated at home. However, five seriously ill children are currently receiving treatment at Dong Nai Children’s Hospital. Three of these children have shown signs of improvement while two remain on ventilators. One child was given a good prognosis while another experienced a cardiac arrest during an emergency at Long Khanh Regional General Hospital. Additionally, a critically ill six-year-old patient was transferred to Children’s Hospital 1 in Ho Chi Minh City from Dong Nai Children’s Hospital for further treatment.
Investigations into the Bang bread shop where the poisoning occurred revealed that the owner bought ingredients and prepared the bread at home before shutting down his business permanently following reports of contamination by authorities tracing back to late March this year when several children fell sick after eating Bang bread at his shop in Ho Chi Minh City’s Binh Thanh District