Risk assesstment in Toxic Oil Syndrome and his pidemiological circumstances: ethic, social and technic aspects

PósterOn the 1st of May a child died in the Niño Jesús Hospital, in Madrid. He had a new disease, never seen before on the medical bibliography. A month later, his doctor ventured a cause for the disease: adulterated, unlabeled street oil, sold by itinerant vendors. Beginning that day, Spain lived the worst food-born epidemic in its entire history. For many years, the specific etymological agent remained unknown and the animal models gave no results in simulating the disease. Even more, at the time of the epidemics little was known about the origin of the oil, nor was it certain that the epidemic was caused by the oil. An action had to be taken, but solely scarce epidemiological information was available. This project will try to review the administrative actions as well as the social and ethical consequences derived from them