The number six outbreak of 2022 was the hepatitis in strawberries outbreak that sickened at least 19 people in four states. Thirteen of those patients were hospitalized, which is very high for this type of outbreak. This hepatitis A outbreak ended in August 2022. The illnesses were linked to HEB organic strawberries and FreshKampo strawberries. The case count by state was: Arizona (1), California (16), Minnesota (1), and North Dakota (1). Illness onset dates ranged from March 28, 2022 to May 6, 2022. The patient age range was from 9 to 73 years. There were 18 confirmed cases and one probable case. The outbreak was solved through epidemiologic and traceback evidence. Seventy-three percent of patients said they ate fresh organic strawberries before they got sick. The strawberries … [Read more...]
Strawberry Hepatitis A Outbreak Ends with 18 Sick 13 Hospitalized
The strawberry hepatitis A outbreak has ended with 18 sick, including one probable case, and 13 hospitalized, including 1 probable case, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The illness were linked to FreshKampo and HEB organic strawberries. The case count by state is: California (16), Minnesota (1), and North Dakota (1). Illness onset dates range from March 28, 2022 to May 6, 2022. The patient age range was from 9 to 73 years. Epidemiologic and traceback evidence has indicated that fresh organic strawberries were the likely source of this outbreak. In interviews, 73% of patients reported eating fresh organic strawberries before they got sick. If you purchased either brand of strawberries during the time period of March 5, 2022 through April 15, … [Read more...]
Three New Outbreaks on FDA CORE Investigation Table
Three new outbreaks have been posted on the FDA's CORE Outbreak Investigation Table. A new E. coli O157:H7 outbreak and two Salmonella outbreaks have been added. And two outbreak investigations have ended. This table doesn't tell us very much about these outbreaks. And unless there is some action that consumers can take, such as a recall, the FDA doesn't identify any probable cause. The new E. coli O157:H7 outbreak has sickened at least 29 people in Michigan and Ohio. Nine people are hospitalized. Traceback has been initiated in that investigation. A new Salmonella Senftenberg outbreak has sickened at least 19 people. No traceback has been initiated in that outbreak. And a new Salmonella Typhimurium outbreak has sickened at least 44 people. Traceback has been initiated in that … [Read more...]
FDA Works to Improve Safety of Fresh and Frozen Berries
The FDA is working to improve the safety of fresh and frozen berries in the wake of hepatitis A and norovirus outbreaks linked to those items. An ongoing hepatitis A outbreak linked to fresh organic strawberries has sickened at least 18 people in three states, and a hepatitis A outbreak in 2020 linked to blackberries sickened 20 people in seven states. In the United States, there have been three hepatitis A outbreaks and three norovirus outbreak linked to frozen berries from 1990 to 2016, and since 2011, there have been three hepatitis A outbreaks linked to fresh berries. Globally, from 1983 to 2018, there were 50 outbreaks associated with frozen berries, with 36 caused by norovirus and 14 by hepatitis. While freezing preserves berries, it does not inactive viruses. The berries … [Read more...]
One More Probable Hepatitis A Strawberries Case Added
One more probable hepatitis A strawberries case has been added to the investigation into the outbreak linked to that fruit, according to the FDA. That person has been hospitalized. We do not know where that person lives, or the age range of any of the patients. We do know that the last illness onset date was May 6, 2022. And the recall of Urban Remedy Tea that was reported on June 10, 2022 is now considered a market withdrawal, since that product was not made with the recalled strawberries. The strawberries were imported from Baja, California and branded as FreshKampo and HEB by a common supplier. The berries that caused these illnesses were purchased between March 5, 2022 and April 15, 2022. They are obviously past their shelf life, but some consumers may have processed and … [Read more...]
Strawberry Hepatitis A Outbreak Grows with 13 Hospitalized
The strawberry hepatitis A outbreak has now hospitalized 13 people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Eighteen people are sick in three states, an increase of one more patient since the outbreak was announced on May 28, 2022. The CDC recommends that anyone who bought fresh organic strawberries branded as FreshKampo or HEB from the period of March 5, 2022 and April 15, 2022, and then froze those strawberries discard them immediately. If you aren't sure if you bought those brands, throw them away. If you ate those strawberries within the last two weeks, talk to your doctor about getting a hepatitis A vaccine. That vaccine is effective only if given within the first two weeks after exposure. The case count by state is: California (16), Minnesota … [Read more...]