Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City on Sunday evening received six critically-ill patients suffering from suspected methanol poisoning after drinking fruit wine during a group tour, a hospital representative confirmed on Monday.

The six patients, aged between 25 and 51, were transferred from Can Giuoc District Hospital in neighboring Long An Province at around 8:30 pm.

Two of them were already in a coma and required intubation and mechanical ventilation.

These six, consisting of D.T.D., T.H.T., P.V.T.B., B.V.D., D.V.L., and P.N.Q.K., are residents of southern Tien Giang Province.

The group had traveled to south-central Ninh Thuan Province, where they consumed over six 500ml bottles of a fruit wine labeled ‘K.T.’, reportedly produced in Tien Giang, last Saturday evening.

The next morning, all six developed digestive symptoms, including abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting, but initially dismissed these symptoms as hangover effects. 

Their conditions worsened during the return trip to Tien Giang, and by 3:00 pm on Sunday, the youngest, P.N.Q.K., became semi-conscious. 

They were taken to Can Giuoc Hospital, where B.V.D. and P.N.Q.K. were found unresponsive and required life-saving interventions before being transferred to Cho Ray Hospital.

Dr. Le Quoc Hung, head of the Tropical Diseases Department at Cho Ray Hospital, said the clinical signs strongly pointed to methanol poisoning.

Emergency teams were mobilized immediately, with the two critical patients moved to the intensive care unit for dialysis, while the others underwent blood purification in the emergency ward.

One of the two severe cases has since regained consciousness and may soon be taken off mechanical ventilation. 

However, P.N.Q.K. remains in a deep coma with possible brain damage and is under close observation.

The remaining patients are still being treated and monitored.

Dr. Hung said that methanol poisoning remains a recurring issue, with Cho Ray admitting 30-50 such cases annually.

Methanol, commonly found in cheap industrial alcohol, is sometimes used in counterfeit liquor, making it hard to tell apart from safer ethanol-based rice or grain wine.

He urged the public to avoid alcohol of unknown origin, warning that symptoms such as blurry vision, low blood pressure, cold sweats, seizures, and even coma could indicate methanol poisoning.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on X to get the latest news about Vietnam!