Foodborne Gastroenteritis Outbreaks Research Articles

Postdysenteric reactive arthritis. A clinical and immunogenetic study following an outbreak of salmonellosis.

Following an outbreak of foodborne gastroenteritis caused by Salmonella typhimurium, questionnaires were sent to affected individuals and then to the family physicians of any who experienced extra-enteric complications. Of 260 individuals infected with S typhimurium for whom adequate data were obtained, 19 patients developed joint disease (7.3%). All were men; the mean age +/- SD was 39.3 +/- 1.6 years. Among the 16 patients for whom this information was available, the interval from the onset of diarrhea to the onset of joint pain was less than 7 days in 7, 8-21 days in 2, and greater than 21 days in 7. There was a significantly longer duration of diarrhea in those patients with joint disease (mean +/- SEM 15.2 +/- 2.6 days) than in those without complications (10.0 +/- 1.1 days) (P less than 0.01). The joint disease was monarticular in 3 patients and polyarticular in 16. The joints most commonly affected were the elbow (47%), wrist (47%), knee (42%), low back (32%), and shoulder (32%). Six of the 19 patients had at least 1 extraarticular feature: ocular (5 patients), mucosal (1 patient), urethral (2 patients), or cutaneous (1 patient). Of these 19 patients, 11 were located and agreed to HLA typing. Four were positive for HLA-B27, 6 were HLA-B7 positive, and 1 had HLA-Bw60. Of the 4 B27 positive patients, 3 were DR1 positive; of the 6 B7 positive patients, 5 were DR2 positive.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Incidence of Foodborne Disease in the Netherlands: Annual Summary - 1980

Data on the incidence of foodborne disease in 1980 are presented. A total of 272 incidents affecting 1298 ill persons were analysed. In 64 incidents (337 cases), the etiology was established; micro-organisms appeared to be the main causative agents. Salmonella was responsible for 15 of these incidents (55 cases), Staphylococcus aureus for 6 (106), Clostridium perfringens for 8 (57), Bacillus cereus for 17 (88) and Campylobacter jejuni for 4 (9). Three episodes (4 cases) were caused by Yersinia enterocolitica, Escherichia coli and Vibrio sp. In 11 episodes (18 cases) illness resulted from ingestion of food contaminated with chemical substances. Cases of foodborne disease recorded by the Chief Medical Inspectorate included infections from Salmonella (6347) C. jejuni (531) and Y. enterocolitica (264). However, these could not be analysed further due to a lack of epidemiological information. About 60% of the outbreaks were associated with only two food items: meat and meat products (15%) and Chinese foods (44%). Mishandling of food in foodservice establishments resulted in about two-thirds of the incidents. It is supposed that there is an “over-reporting” of incidents involving Chinese foods from take-away restaurants, compared to episodes involving other foods from other locations, especially from private households. The role of viruses in outbreaks of foodborne gastroenteritis with an incubation period of more than 24 h is discussed.

An outbreak of food-borne gastroenteritis in two hospitals associated with a Norwalk-like virus.

Two connected outbreaks of gastroenteritis in separate hospitals associated with a small round structured virus morphologically indistinguishable from the Norwalk virus are described. The virus was most probably introduced on chicken sandwiches prepared by a member of the kitchen staff who was incubating the disease.

From experience: A food-borne outbreak of gastroenteritis of unknown aetiology

From experience: A food-borne outbreak of gastroenteritis of unknown aetiology

A food-borne outbreak of gastroenteritis of unknown aetiology.

A food-borne outbreak of gastroenteritis of unknown aetiology.

Survival of Vibrio parahaemolyticus in cooked seafood at refrigeration temperatures.

The growth and survival of two strains of Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolated during food-borne gastroenteritis outbreaks in Japan and surface inoculated on cooked shrimp, shrimp with sauce, or cooked crab were tested at various refrigeration temperatures during a 48-h holding period. On cooked shrimp and crab, the vibrios grew well at 18.3 C, but their numbers declined gradually at 10 C and below. At 12.8 C, vibrios remained static for the most part. Thus, it appeared that 12.8 C was the borderline temperature for growth of the organism on cooked seafood. When cocktail sauce was added to surface-inoculated shrimp at a ratio of 2:1, the vibrio die-off rate was accelerated. In the shrimp and sauce few cells remained after 48 h, but in the sauce alone die-off was complete at 6 h.

Survival of Vibrio parahaemolyticus in Cooked Seafood at Refrigeration Temperatures

The growth and survival of two strains of Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolated during food-borne gastroenteritis outbreaks in Japan and surface inoculated on cooked shrimp, shrimp with sauce, or cooked crab were tested at various refrigeration temperatures during a 48-h holding period. On cooked shrimp and crab, the vibrios grew well at 18.3 C, but their numbers declined gradually at 10 C and below. At 12.8 C, vibrios remained static for the most part. Thus, it appeared that 12.8 C was the borderline temperature for growth of the organism on cooked seafood. When cocktail sauce was added to surface-inoculated shrimp at a ratio of 2:1, the vibrio die-off rate was accelerated. In the shrimp and sauce few cells remained after 48 h, but in the sauce alone die-off was complete at 6 h.

Foodborne outbreak of gastroenteritis possibily of multiple bacterial etiology.

Janeway, C. M., M. Goldfield (New Jersey State Dept. of Health, Trenton, N.J. 08625), R. Airman, H. Rosenfeld, C. Jedynak, D. Moulton and W. Lezynski.Foodborne outbreak of gastroenteritis possibly of multiple bacterial etiology. Amer J Epidem 94: 135–141, 1971.—A family Thanksgiving Day turkey dinner served to 18 persons resulted in a foodborne outbreak of gastroenteritis which had a 95% attack rate of illness and a 14% case-fatality rate. Salmonella enteritidis was isolated from 100% of those attending the dinner, as well as from a dog which died after allegedly eating the vomitus of one of the ill individuals. Cultures of left-over stuffing yielded Salmonella enteritidis in a concentration of over a billion salmonellae per gram. Turkey, gravy, peas and several environmental cultures from the home were also positive for Salmonella enteritidis. Although the severity of this outbreak and the short incubation period may reflect the very large inoculum of salmonellae, the possibility of a multiple etiology cannot be excluded, since Clostridium perfringens and Streptococcus faecalis were also isolated in high concentration from food items served. Sufficient cooking of the stuffed turkey probably would have prevented this outbreak.