The Ministry of Health announced that it received 217 methanol poisoning notifications after alcohol consumption. Of this total, 17 cases have been confirmed and 200 are under investigation.
The latest report with update of cases was released by the folder on Monday night (6).
São Paulo concentrates most cases: 82.49% of notifications, with 15 confirmed cases and 164 under investigation. In addition to São Paulo, Paraná had two confirmed cases and four are under investigation.
There are other investigations in 12 states: Acre (1), Ceará (3), Espírito Santo (1), Goiás (3), Minas Gerais (1), Mato Grosso do Sul (5), Paraíba (1), Pernambuco (10), Piauí (3), Rio de Janeiro (1), Rondônia (1) and Rio Grande do Sul (2).
Regarding the deaths, two occurred in São Paulo and 12 are in investigation (one case in Mato Grosso do Sul, three in Pernambuco, six in São Paulo, one in Paraíba and one in Ceará).
Laboratories
In a press conference today, Health Minister Alexandre Padilha said that the federal government intends to help the State of São Paulo to have more speed in confirmation of cases of methanol contamination, by ingestion of alcoholic beverages.
According to the minister, two laboratories will be a reference for the exams: one at the State University of Campinas (Unicamp) and another from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz).
The minister announced formal partnership with Unicamp, which has the structure of the Center for Information and Toxicological Assistance (Ciatox), with capacity to perform around 190 exams per day.
“These exams can, for example, help resolve doubt about confirmed cases in the state of São Paulo, which is where it is concentrated, [onde há] A brutal concentration of cases, ”said the minister.
UNICAMP may, according to the minister, receive samples from other states that eventually want to use the structure as a reference to resolve the case confirmed or not.
Support
In addition to Unicamp, the minister announced that the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation of the Ministry of Health will also make a laboratory available not only from São Paulo, but from other states “with some difficulty to perform methanol detection examination for confirmation or not.”
In order to speed up diagnoses, the minister recommended that health professionals should notify each suspicion. “You don’t have to wait for confirmation of the case to start treatment.”
Antidotes
On Saturday (4), the Ministry of Health announced the acquisition of another 12 thousand ampoules of pharmaceutical ethanol and 2,500 hunger units for the strategic stock of the Unified Health System (SUS) for cases of methanol poisoning by consumption of adulterated alcohol.
Regarding hunger, the minister said the product should arrive this week. The antidote will be concentrated in the reference center of each state. “We are guaranteeing a great strategic stock by precaution.”
The two antidotes (ethanol and hunger), according to the Ministry of Health, can be used to suspect intoxication. The government also adds that the use of medicines should be done exclusively under prescription and medical monitoring.
The acquisition of 2,500 hunger treatments was made possible in partnership with the Pan American Health Organization Strategic Fund (PAHO) with a Japan manufacturer, which maintains inventory in the United States.
Matter expanded at 8:20 pm
