In this article, a case of severe foodborne botulism in a 78-year-old man due to homemade pesto is presented. His initial symptoms were gastrointestinal problems. Later he suffered of cranial nerve palsies, muscle weakness of the upper extremities and respiratory failure, so he had to be admitted to the intensive care unit for mechanical ventilation. The botulism was confirmed by serology and culture. Because of spontaneously improving neurological deficits, we decided not to treat with the botulism antitoxin and the patient had complete clinical remission.
Keywords: Botulism; Clostridium botulinum; Foodborne botulism; Neurotoxin.