Cantaloupe Listeria Outbreak Widens In Nebraska, New Mexico, Colorado and Texas
The cantaloupe listeriosis outbreak has widened its reach into Nebraska, New Mexico, Colorado and Texas, according to reports from state health departments.
Nebraska health officials reported on September 23, that a man in his eighties from western Nebraska was the state’s first fatality of the outbreak which began in mid-August. “Analysis shows that the strains of Listeria that are being investigated in Colorado match the one identified with this individual,” said Dr. Joann Schaefer, Chief Medical Officer and Director of the Division of Public Health in a press release. Including this death Nebraska now has six confirmed cases of listeriosis associated with this outbreak.
New Mexico health officials are reporting 10 cases of listeriosis confirmed as part of the outbreak, four of whom have died. Three additional cases are under investigation, one of those people has died.
In Texas, a third person from Dallas County was diagnosed with listeriosis linked to the outbreak, according to a KERA television report.
Colorado cases confirmed as part of the outbreak increased from 14 to 15 this week, according to the Denver Post. Two people from Colorado have died.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said Friday that tainted cantaloupes were shipped to more states than originally thought. States that received shipments of potentially tainted cantaloupe from July 29 through September 10, 2011 include: Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wyoming.
Sources:
http://www.dhhs.ne.gov/newsroom/newsreleases/2011/Sept/listeria2.htm
http://www.health.state.nm.us/
http://www.kdheks.gov/news/web_archives/2011/09222011a.htm
