Uhhh, this is definitely not the kind of summer news anyone wanted to hear…
A nasty parasite linked to explosive, watery diarrhea has already sickened more than 140 people across the US, and health officials are still trying to figure out exactly what’s behind the growing outbreak. According to information released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this week, a total of 145 people across 20 states had been infected between the start of May and June 16 — with 20 of those patients ending up in the hospital.
WTF?!
Thankfully, no deaths have been reported so far. But here’s the part that’s making investigators especially uneasy… the people who became sick all reportedly had one major thing in common: they had not recently traveled outside the country.
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That’s a huge clue because infections caused by the parasite, identified by the CDC as Cyclospora cayetanensis, are much more commonly associated with travel to tropical or subtropical regions, where contaminated food or water can spread the illness. Since these patients weren’t returning from overseas vacations, federal investigators now believe the culprit is likely some sort of food people ate right here in the US.
Yikes!!
According to the CDC, along with state and federal health officials via the New York Post and others on Tuesday, investigators are currently working to connect multiple clusters of illnesses in hopes of identifying the contaminated food source. As of now, though, they haven’t pinpointed exactly what product may be responsible.
Even more concerning, too, is how officials say the real number of infections could actually be much higher than what’s been confirmed. Since not everyone seeks medical care or gets tested, and the issue can present itself as just really really awful diarrhea in some cases, there may be additional cases that haven’t yet been identified, both in the reported states and elsewhere.
The outbreak has stretched across a large portion of the country. Cases have been reported in New York, New Jersey, Washington DC, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Illinois, Georgia, Florida, Texas, Louisiana, Colorado, and Alaska.
Heck, it’s basically easier to count where cases aren’t than where they are!
FYI, New York currently has the highest number of reported infections, while Texas and Illinois also have significant case counts.
The illness itself, known as cyclosporiasis, isn’t exactly subtle. Symptoms usually begin about a week after someone becomes infected and primarily affect the digestive system. The headline symptom is explosive, watery diarrhea, but that’s far from the only miserable side effect. Patients may also experience severe stomach cramps, nausea, vomiting, bloating, fatigue, a low-grade fever, and loss of appetite. Some infected people, however, may not notice any symptoms at all.
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Although the infection sometimes clears up without treatment, CDC experts warn symptoms can linger for a month or even longer, raising the risk of dehydration if left untreated.
Sheesh…
FYI, doctors typically prescribe the antibiotic trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, which is also sold under brand names including Bactrim, Septra, and Cotrim.
The CDC also notes that there’s currently no evidence suggesting the parasite spreads directly from one person to another. Instead, investigators believe contaminated food is the most likely explanation in this outbreak. Imported fresh produce has been associated with Cyclospora infections in the past, although officials have not been able to confirm yet whether that’s what happened here.
For now, health experts continue to recommend careful food handling, proper preparation and storage practices, and avoiding food or water that may be contaminated whenever possible.
Hopefully investigators can identify the source sooner rather than later because, let’s be honest, nobody wants this particular mystery showing up on their dinner plate!!!
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