In 1979 an outbreak of hepatoenteritis, also known as the Palm Island mystery disease, was reported and described a hepatitis

Hepatitis

Hepatitis is a medical condition defined by the inflammation of the liver and characterized by the presence of inflammatory cells in the tissue of the organ. The name is from the Greek hepar , the root being hepat- , meaning liver, and suffix -itis, meaning "inflammation"...

-like illness (associated in many cases with dehydration and bloody diarrhoea) in 148 people (138 children and 10 adults) of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent in Palm Island, Queensland

Palm Island, Queensland

Palm Island is an Aboriginal community located on Great Palm Island, also called by the Aboriginal name "Bwgcolman", an island on the Great Barrier Reef in North Queensland, Australia The settlement is also known by a variety of other names including "the Mission", Palm Island Settlement or Palm...

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Causes

The cause of the outbreak was determined to be the addition of excessive doses of copper sulfate to the water supply of Solomon Dam to target a cyanobacteria bloom of Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii

Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii

Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii is a cyanobacterium....

. The excessive dosing was following the use of least-cost contractors to control the algae, who were unqualified in the field.

Toxins from the cyanobacteria itself had also been described as a possible cause.

Early suggestions included Toxocariasis

Toxocariasis

-History of discovery:Werner described a parasitic nematode in dogs in 1782 which he named Ascaris canis. Johnston determined that what Werner had described was actually a member of the genus Toxocara established by Stiles in 1905. Fữlleborn speculated that T canis larvae might cause granulomatous...

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Presentation

Symptoms of hepatoenteritis included diarrhoea, vomiting attacks, loss of balance and disorientation.

The perinatal effects of cyanobacteria contamination of drinking water

Drinking water

Drinking water or potable water is water pure enough to be consumed or used with low risk of immediate or long term harm. In most developed countries, the water supplied to households, commerce and industry is all of drinking water standard, even though only a very small proportion is actually...

 include prematurity

Premature birth

In humans preterm birth refers to the birth of a baby of less than 37 weeks gestational age. The cause for preterm birth is in many situations elusive and unknown; many factors appear to be associated with the development of preterm birth, making the reduction of preterm birth a challenging...

, low birth weight

Low birth weight

Low birth weight is defined as a birth weight of a liveborn infant of less than 2,500 g. regardless of gestational age-Causes:LBW is either the result of preterm birth or of the infant being small for gestational age , or a combination of...

 and congenital defects detected at birth. In 1996 there were 63 deaths attributed to drinking water contamination in Caruaru

Caruaru

Caruaru is a Brazilian city in the Pernambuco state. The most populous city in the interior of the state, it's located in the zone named Agreste and because of its cultural importance, it's known by its people as the Capital do Agreste and Princesinha do Agreste.130 kilometers from...

, Brazil

Brazil

Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

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Further reading

• Bourke ATC, Hawes RB, Nielson A, Stallman ND. An outbreak of hepatoenteritis (the Palm Island mystery disease) possibly caused by algal intoxication [abstract]. Toxicon Suppl 1983;45-48.'