Pfiesteria

What is Pfiesteria, and where is it found?
Pfiesteria (fee-STEER-ee-uh) is a microscopic aquatic organism that might produce chemicals called toxins that injure or kill fish. However, these toxins have never been definitively identified.

During the 1990s, Pfiesteria was blamed for fish kills on the Eastern coast from Delaware to North Carolina. It was reported to be a problem in the warmer months, usually between April and October, and only in areas where salt waters and fresh waters mix, such as estuaries, sounds, and rivers near the coast. Pfiesteria has never been known to be a problem in inland streams, rivers or lakes, or in open ocean waters. Pfiesteria has not been reported as a cause of fish kills in North Carolina in recent years, although it is still present. Moreover, the results of a number of scientific studies performed during the past decade cast doubt on whether it has ever been a primary cause of fish kills in natural settings, here or elsewhere.

Does Pfiesteria affect people?
It has been theorized that, if and when Pfiesteria produces toxins, the toxins may mix with the water and possibly the air, and people may then be at risk if the toxins are absorbed through their skin or inhaled. During the 1990s, some researchers reported that exposure to Pfiesteria caused headaches, dizziness, a burning sensation on the skin or eyes, skin lesions or sores, nausea, intestinal distress, and short-term memory loss in some people. However, such human health effects have not been substantiated by other researchers. In addition, other possible causes were not adequately excluded as the cause of the observed symptoms in the situations in which Pfiesteria was blamed for human illness.

There is no evidence that people have gotten ill from eating fish or shellfish exposed to Pfiesteria.

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Page last updated on February 10, 2012