A swimming pool E. coli O157:H7 outbreak in Pennsylvania in June 2021 sickened 15 children, according to the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The patients were ages 4 to 14; all swam at the pool on May 31, 2021, the opening date, and had no other known common exposure. On June 7, 2021, the Pennsylvania Department of Health received multiple reports of gastrointestinal illness from patrons of a community swimming pool. Two people reported positive Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) and Clostridioides difficile tests from stool specimens. The government ordered the pool closed, and initiated an outbreak response. Confirmed cases were defined as isolation of E. coli O157:H7 or detection of Shiga toxin or Shiga toxin genes from stool specimens of persons who … [Read more...]
Acute Pediatric Hepatitis Cases Increase in 36 States
Acute pediatric hepatitis cases in the United States are increasing, and now affect children in 36 states, according to the CDC. The number of persons under investigation (PUI) is now 180. PUI does not meant the case is confirmed. The states and the CDC are "looking broadly" at hepatitis cases of unknown origin in children under the age of 10 since October 2021. This number may change as the medical charts are reviewed. These numbers will be updated weekly. The states and territories with possible cases include Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, … [Read more...]
Three Potential Severe Hepatitis Cases in Children in Illinois
The problem with severe hepatitis cases in children has now spread to Illinois, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH). There are more than a hundred children sickened around the world in this outbreak that may be linked to a certain strain of adenovirus. The children are all under the age of 10. One child living in Illinois required a liver transplant. Nine children who live in Alabama are also sick. Two of those children have required liver transplants. Those children range in age from one to six years. All were previously healthy, and none had COVID-19. In Illinois, two of the cases are in suburban Chicago, and one is in Western Illinois. IDPH is working to learn of other suspected cases and is asking healthcare providers in the state to be alert for … [Read more...]
CDC Issues Alert For Adenovirus Testing in Children With Acute Hepatitis
The CDC has issued a Health Alert Network (HAN) Alert for conducting adenovirus testing in children with acute Hepatitis. This comes after reports from Alabama of nine children under the age of 10 presenting with symptoms of severe hepatitis. Three of those children were in acute liver failure; those patients tested positive for adenovirus. Officials think these illnesses may be related to adenovirus 41. None of the children had COVID-19 and none had any previous health conditions. Two of the patients required liver transplants. Hepatitis A, B, C, D, and E are viruses, but hepatitis just means inflammation of the liver, and can be caused by chemicals, toxins, medications, alcohol use, and other viruses. Patients with liver inflammation can get very sick and suffer liver failure; … [Read more...]
Lavender Aromatherapy Spray Tests Positive For Burkholderia pseudomallei
Better Homes & Gardens Aromatherapy Spray, Sold at Walmart, is Suspected in Four Illnesses, Resulting in Two Deaths Lavender aromatherapy spray has tested positive for deadly Burkholderia pseudomallei bacteria, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Testing found the pathogen in Better Homes & Gardens Lavender & Chamomile Essential Oil Infused Aromatherapy Room Spray with Gemstones. The spray was found on October 6, 2021 in the home of a Georgia resident who got sick with melioidosis in late July, 2021. That person died, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission recall notice. This is the same type of bacteria that sickened four people in the U.S. earlier this year. The patients lived in Georgia, Kansas, Texas, and Minnesota. Two of the … [Read more...]
Cilantro Condiment Cup Tests Positive For Salmonella Oranienburg
A cilantro condiment cup has tested positive for the outbreak strain of Salmonella Oranienburg, according to the latest update on the mystery Salmonella outbreak. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that the sample was then from a takeout condiment cup containing cilantro, lime, and onions. State and local officials have collected food items from one of the restaurants where sick people ate. But because multiple food items were ini the condiment cup and in the sample that was tested, it is "not possible" to know which food item was contaminated. Public health officials are using this information together with other information to help narrow the list of possible foods that may be linked to these illnesses. But in a dendrogram that was posted on the National … [Read more...]
Protracted Intermittent Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Michigan Restaurant
In the Centers for Disease Control's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) for the week of August 20, 2021, a report details the protracted intermittent Salmonella outbreak that was linked to a restaurant in Michigan from 2008 to 2019. The Salmonella Mbandaka contamination was impossible to eradicate, and the restaurant was permanently closed in 2018. In 2018, Michigan public health officials found that a single restaurant in southwest Michigan was the source for the Salmonella Mbandaka infections since 2008. Isolates from 36 ill persons shared two highly related pulsed-field gel electrophoresis patterns and highly related whole genome sequencing subtypes. The first focus of the investigation was on food items. Sporadic case definitions over years, along with difficulty in … [Read more...]
CDC Updates Overall Cyclosporiasis Outbreak: 462 Sick in 28 States
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated their overall cyclosporiasis outbreak investigation for 2021. At least 462 people in 28 states are sick. Part of this outbreak is noted on the FDA's Outbreak Investigation Table. Eighty three people are now sick in that outbreak, which does not have an identified food source, although traceback has been initiated. The case count has increased by 254 since the last update on July 14, 2021. Cases continue to be reported to the CDC. All 462 patients, whose illnesses have been laboratory-confirmed, had no history of international travel during the 14 day period before illness onset. Illness onset dates range from May 1, 2021 to July 16, 2021. At least 41 people have been hospitalized. At least one cyclospora outbreak … [Read more...]
MMWR on Multistate Outbreak of E. coli O26 Infections Linked to Raw Flour
Most consumers do not recognize that raw, or uncooked, flour, is considered a health risk as this item is a raw agricultural product that has not undergone a kill step to eliminate pathogens. In the April 23, 2021 issue of the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), a study is presented that looked at the 2019 multistate outbreak of E. coli O26 linked to raw flour. On February 20, 2019, PulseNet identified six Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O26:H11 infections with the same DNA fingerprint. This pattern matched infections from a July 2018 outbreak that was associated with ground beef. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) launched an investigation to identify the outbreak source. Investigators first thought the outbreak was linked to ground beef because … [Read more...]
All Jule’s Foods Recalled For Salmonella Contamination and Outbreak
All Jule's Foods recalled for Salmonella contamination and an outbreak, according to an FDA recall notice. The notice states that the FDA and CDC are investigating this outbreak. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not yet released any information about this outbreak, but there is a new Salmonella Duisburg outbreak that was posted on the FDA's Core Investigation Table on April 22, 2021 with five people sick. We still don't know the patient age range, illness onset dates, or whether anyone has been hospitalized. The FDA has preliminary confirmation of Salmonella in Jule's Foods brie products that contain cashews. The company is working with the FDA to find the source of the pathogen in samples that were collected by the California Department of Public Health. Thus this … [Read more...]
