Abstract
In June 2017, an outbreak of Salmonella Kottbus infection was suspected in Germany. We investigated the outbreak with whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and a case-control study. Forty-six isolates from 69 cases were subtyped. Three WGS clusters were identified: cluster 1 (n = 36), cluster 2 (n = 5) and cluster 3 (n = 3). Compared to controls, cluster 1 cases more frequently consumed raw smoked ham (odds ratio (OR) 10, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.2-88) bought at supermarket chain X (OR 36, 95% CI 4-356; 9/10 consumed ham Y). All four cluster 2 cases interviewed had consumed quail eggs. Timely WGS was invaluable in distinguishing concurrent outbreaks of a rare Salmonella serotype.
Highlights
In Germany, salmonellosis is a notifiable disease
Kottbus case was defined as confirmed if subtyping, either using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) or whole-genome sequencing (WGS), showed that it belonged to an outbreak cluster
We identified 69 cases in 13 states in Germany
Summary
In Germany, salmonellosis is a notifiable disease. Kottbus) is a rare serotype with three to four notifications per month [1]. S. Kottbus has been repeatedly isolated from poultry and poultry meat and has been found in cattle, pork, pigs and reptiles [2]. Sprouts and human milk have been identified as vehicles in previous S. Kottbus outbreaks [3,4,5]
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