According to information from Bac Kan province on September 23, local authorities have found the cause of a series of students with the same symptoms being hospitalized.

As of September 22, a total of 57 students and adults have been hospitalized, while 25 other patients are being monitored and treated at home.

The Department of Health of Bac Kan province held an urgent meeting on September 22 to assess the cause of a series of students at Nong Thuong Primary and Secondary School (Bac Kan City) being hospitalized with symptoms of vomiting, fever, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.

After more than 24 hours of investigation, the Bac Kan Provincial Center for Disease Control announced initial test results, identifying Staphylococcus aureus as the cause of the outbreak in the school.

According to the agency's report, tests on six patient samples returned positive results for staphylococcus aureus, a type of bacteria that often causes food poisoning and gastrointestinal infections.

Previously, on September 19, the school organized the first boarding lunch for 88 students and 5 teachers, including rice, fried chicken, vegetable soup, stir-fried potatoes and watermelon. By the evening of the same day, 1 student began to show symptoms of a sore throat, but did not have a fever or vomit. The next morning, September 20, several other students showed symptoms such as fever, vomiting and stomachache.

By the evening of September 20, the number of hospitalized students had increased to more than 20. By September 21, the number of hospitalized students and adults had continued to increase to 54. Most of the patients had symptoms of vomiting, abdominal pain, fever, and diarrhea. In addition, some adults, including teachers and school staff, also showed similar symptoms.

VAN PHUC