An E. coli outbreak is associated with ham sold at Williams Brothers Meat Market in Washington, Missouri, according to news reports. The Franklin County Health Department is investigating this outbreak, although there is no mention of the illnesses or the outbreak on that agency’s website.
Four people are apparently sick in this outbreak. No information about the patient age range, when they got sick, if anyone was hospitalized, or if anyone developed hemolytic uremic syndrome was included in any of the news reports. The news reports also did not state the serotype of E. coli that caused this particular outbreak.
The Emissourian states that “an epidemiological investigation identified a link between the cases and a case reported in June.” There are four confirmed cases of E. coli food poisoning from that Williams Brothers Meat Market ham, and one probable case with the same strain. The Franklin County Health Department started investigating this outbreak in August 2018.
You can contact food safety attorney Fred Pritzker for help by calling 1-888-377-8900.
Williams Brothers Meat Market is recalling all cured or smoked ready-to-eat whole ham ham steaks, and sandwich ham products that were packaged between May 25, 2018 and June 1 2018. About 125 pounds of ham were sold that could have been contaminated.
The symptoms of an E. coli infection include severe and painful abdominal cramps, a slight fever, and diarrhea that is bloody or watery. These symptoms usually start a few days to a week after a person eats food that is contaminated with this pathogen.
If the patient is under the age of 5, a complication called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) may develop, which is a type of kidney failure. Symptoms of HUS include little urine output, lethargy, pale skin, easy bruising, and a skin rash. Anyone experiencing these symptoms should see a doctor as soon as possible.
