A four-state E. coli outbreak linked to ground beef produced by Wolverine Packing Co. of Detroit was the seventh-largest multistate food poisoning outbreak of 2014. Twelve people were sickened and six were hospitalized but none developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), the life-threatening complication of E. coli infections that causes kidney failure.
The outbreak sickened five people in Michigan, four in Ohio, 1 in Missouri and 1 in Massachusetts. All of the illnesses were linked to restaurant meals.
Wolverine recalled almost 2 million pounds of ground beef products. The 97-page list of ground beef products recalled, did not include restaurant names.
The case patients in this outbreak first became symptomatic between April 22, 2014 to May 2, 2014. They range in age from 19 years to 46 years, with a median age of 26 years. About 54 percent are male.
Symptoms of an E. coli infection, which include abdominal cramping and bloody diarrhea, usually set in about three days after exposure, but can take up to a week to develop.
