How this Outbreak of salmonella that has sickened 93 people in 23 US states?

What is Salmonella?

A salmonella infection is a foodborne illness caused by the salmonella bacteria carried by some animals, which can be transmitted from kitchen surfaces and can be in water, soil, animal feces, raw meats, and eggs. Salmonella infections typically affect the intestines, causing vomiting, fever, and other symptoms that usually resolve without medical treatment. You can help prevent salmonella infections by not serving any raw meat or eggs, and by not keeping reptiles as pets, particularly if you have very young children. Hand washing is a powerful way to guard against salmonella

infections, so it's essential to teach kids to wash their hands, particularly after trips to the bathroom and before handling food in any way.

More info Salmonella

Not everyone who ingests salmonella bacteria will become ill. Children, especially infants, are the most likely candidates to get sick from it. About 50,000 cases of salmonella infection are reported in the United States each year and about a third of those are in kids 4 years old or younger. The type of salmonella most commonly associated with infections in humans is called nontyphoidal salmonella. It is carried by chickens, cows, and reptiles such as turtles, lizards, and iguanas.

Another, rarer form of salmonella, typhoid salmonella (typhoid fever), is carried only by humans and is usually transmitted through direct contact with the fecal matter of an infected person. This kind of salmonella infection can lead to high fever, abdominal pain, headache, malaise, lethargy, skin rash, constipation, and delirium. It occurs primarily in developing countries without appropriate systems for handling human waste.

Signs and Symptoms

A salmonella infection generally causes nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, diarrhea (sometimes bloody), fever, and headache. Because many different kinds of illnesses can cause these symptoms, most doctors will take a stool sample to make an accurate diagnosis. Symptoms of most salmonella infections usually appear within 3 days of contamination and typically go away without medical treatment. In cases of typhoid fever caused by salmonella bacteria, early symptoms are the same. But in the second week, the liver and spleen can become enlarged, and a distinctive "rose spotted" skin rash may appear. From there, the infection can cause other health problems, like meningitis and pneumonia.

People at risk for more serious complications from a salmonella infection include those who:

•have compromised immune systems (such as people with HIV)

•take cancer-fighting drugs

•have sickle cell disease or an absent or nonfunctioning spleen

•take chronic stomach acid suppression medication

In these higher-risk groups, most doctors will treat an infection with antibiotics to prevent it from spreading to other parts of the body and causing additional health problems.

How to prevent salmonella infection

You have many ways to help prevent salmonella bacteria from making your family sick. Most salmonella bacteria appear in animal products and can be killed by the heat from cooking. So it's important to make sure that you don't serve raw or undercooked eggs, poultry, or meat. Microwaving is not a reliable way to kill the salmonella bacteria. Because salmonella bacteria can contaminate even intact and disinfected grade A eggs, avoid serving poached eggs or eggs that are served sunny-side up.Salmonella also can be spread through cross-contamination, so when you're preparing meals, keep uncooked meats away from cooked and ready-to-eat foods. In addition, thoroughly wash your hands, cutting boards, counters, and knives after handling uncooked foods.

Some foods may contain unrecognized raw-food products and should be avoided. Caesar salad dressing, the Italian dessert tiramisu, homemade ice cream, chocolate mousse, eggnog, cookie dough, and frostings can contain raw eggs. Unpasteurized milk and juices also can be contaminated with salmonella. Fecal matter (poop) is often the source of salmonella contamination, so hand washing is extremely important, particularly after using the toilet and before preparing food.

Take care to avoid contact with the feces of family pets — especially reptiles. Wash your hands thoroughly after handling an animal and ensure that no reptiles are permitted to come into contact with an infant. Even healthy reptiles (especially turtles and iguanas) are not appropriate pets for small children and should not be in the same house as an infant.

Home Treatment

Although some cases of salmonella may require antibiotics, the infection typically resolves on its own. The signs and symptoms of salmonella, however, can be treated with simple treatment measures that can be accomplished at home. The excessive diarrhea can cause dehydration and a loss of nutrients, which can be replaced through over-the-counter electrolyte solutions and the consumption of regular amounts of water. You may be tempted to take anti-diarrheal medication, but according to the New York Times Health Guide on salmonella, these should not be taken as they could cause the infection to last longer than it normally would. Other ways to treat diarrhea include eating a diet of bananas, rice, apple sauce and toast, a diet known as the BRAT diet. These foods help the stools become firmer, which in turn cuts down on the amount of diarrhea passed. Avoiding foods that may exacerbate the symptoms, such as dairy or spicy foods, may provide help as well.

 

How to treat salmonella infection

If your child has a salmonella infection and a healthy immune system, your doctor may let the infection pass without treatment. But any time your child develops a fever, headache, or bloody diarrhea, call the doctor to rule out any other problems.

If your child is infected and has a fever, you may want to give acetaminophen to reduce his or her temperature and relieve cramping. As with any infection that causes diarrhea, it's important to give your child plenty of liquids to avoid dehydration.

New information-93 Sick in 23 States with Salmonella from Ohio Mail Order Hatchery

A new outbreak of salmonella that has sickened 93 people in 23 states of the US has been traced to a hatchery in Ohio that supplies live chicks and ducklings by mail order, federal health officials said on Wednesday. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) say in an initial announcement dated 30 May:

Findings of multiple traceback investigations of live chicks and ducklings from homes of ill persons have identified a single mail-order hatchery in Ohio as the source of these chicks and ducklings. The age range of infected people is from under 1 to 100 years. 18 of them have been hospitalized and officials are also investigating one death that may be related to this outbreak. Over a third of the people who are sick are children aged 10 and under. Tests confirm that the strains involved are Salmonella Infantis, Salmonella Newport, and Salmonella Lille.The Ohio hatchery behind this latest outbreak is the same one that was linked to an outbreak of Salmonella Altona and Salmonella Johannesburg infections in 2011.The Ohio Department of Agriculture inspected the facility in May 2012 and made recommendations for improvements, reports the CDC.

 

The investigation, which is still ongoing, is a collaboration between the CDC, public health and agriculture officials at state and federal levels. They are using a national network called Pulse Net to identify cases of illness that could be part of the outbreak. PulseNet labs carry out tests that fingerprint foodborne disease-causing bacteria to identify individual strains at the DNA level. The results are then sent to a CDC database that officials can consult and make a rapid comparison of DNA patterns to identify strains. The people sickened in this latest outbreak began falling ill between the beginning of March and the middle of May. So far, officials have interviewed 41 of them. Of the 41 people interviewed, 37 reported touching live chicks and ducklings in the week leading up to falling ill. 32 of them said they had bought chicks and ducklings, and had receipts with vendor information. They had bought the chicks and ducklings to keep in their backyards, either to produce eggs or meat, or to keep as pets. The CDC advises consumers who come into contact with live poultry to follow these recommendations to avoid becoming infected with salmonella:

Wash hands thoroughly with soap and water immediately after touching live poultry or anything in the area where they live and roam. Adults should make sure young children wash their hands thoroughly and use soap as well as water.

1. If soap and water are not readily available then use hand sanitizer until you are able to use soap and water to thoroughly wash your hands.

2. Thoroughly clean cages, feed and water containers and any other materials you use for raising and caring for live poultry.

3. Don't let elderly people, children under 5, or people who are ill or have weak immune systems touch live poultry, even chicks and ducklings.

4. Never "snuggle" or kiss ducks, hens, chicks, or any form of live poultry, and when you are around them, avoid touching your mouth, and never eat when you are with them.

5. Never allow live poultry to come inside the house, not even into bathrooms, and especially not where you prepare, serve, or store food. This includes not only the kitchen and indoor eating areas, but also outdoor eating areas, such as a patio.

More and more people, as a move toward a greener, healthier lifestyle, are choosing to keep live poultry in their back yard. If you do this, you need to bear in mind the health risks, especially to children, and take steps to minimize them, says the CDC, who have a webpage on Keeping Backyard Poultry.