Two people from Louisiana were hospitalized by the Salmonella outbreak that has sickened at least 100 people in 19 states and the District of Columbia, a Louisiana health department spokesperson told Food Poisoning Bulletin today.
According to the lastest update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), issued April 6, two residents of Louisiana were among the 100 confirmed case patients sickend by a rare strain of Salmonella called Salmonella Bareilly.
Both of those patients are from the southeastern part of the state and both required hospitalization after becoming ill between February 14 and February 18 2012, the spokesperson said.
State and federal health officials have been collaborating since January to determine the source of the outbreak, but have not yet identified one. But because many patients, including one from Louisiana, told investigators that they ate sushi prior to becoming ill, raw fish dishes such as sushi and sashimi are among the suspected food sources.
Symptoms of a Salmonella infection include abdominal cramps, nausea, fever and diarrhea which can sometimes be bloody. Symptoms usually develop six to 72 hours after exposure and last four to seven days. Health officials advise anyone with these symptoms to see a health care provider.
