After an infant eats the spores of this bacteria, the disease can occur within a few hours or up to a week after the exposure. The first symptom is constipation, which can appear three to 30 days following ingestion of honey. The next symptoms observed are listlessness, decreased appetite, and a weakened cry over the next several days. Gagging and sucking reflexes diminish and the child moves less and less. Infant botulism frequently causes an infant to have an unusual breathing pattern, which often requires putting the infant on a ventilator to help with breathing.
Most infants recover from botulism with hospital care.
However, if infant botulism is not treated immediately, it could result in death. Hospital care is necessary. Identifying the botulism toxin in the stool is needed for proper diagnosis. This toxin can cause nerve damage for weeks or even months. Neither antibiotics nor antitoxin have proven beneficial in treating infant botulism and may even make the illness worse.