Listeria Outbreak Includes Kansas
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Five Kansas listeriosis cases are part of the multi-state cantaloupe listeria outbreak, according to state health officials.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the Kansas Department of Agriculture were notified that samples from five of the eight listeriosis cases reported since August 26 match the outbreak strain, according to a September 22 press release. Two of the eight patients died and the cause of both deaths is still being investigated.
The confirmed cases are expected to be added to the next update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) whose most recent update from September 21 identifies a total of 55 people infected in 14 states. The illnesses started on or after August 4, 2011. By state, the breakdown form that update is as follows: California (1), Colorado (14), Illinois (1), Indiana (1), Maryland (1), Montana (1), Nebraska (4), New Mexico (10), Oklahoma (8), Texas (9), Virginia (1), West Virginia (1), Wisconsin (2), and Wyoming (1).
Earlier this month health officials identified Rocky Ford cantaloupes from Jensen Farms of Holly, Colo., as the likely source of the outbreak. On September 14, Jensen Farms issued a voluntary recall of its Rocky Ford cantaloupe because of potential contamination with Listeria monocytogenes, the foodborne pathogen that causes listeriosis. The recall covered melons shipped from July 29 through September 10, 2011. The cantaloupes were distributed in Kansas and several other states.
Listeriosis is a serious, sometimes fatal infection caused by eating food contaminated with the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes. The disease primarily affects older adults, people with weakened immune systems, pregnant women and newborns.
Symptoms include fever and muscle aches, often preceded by diarrhea or other gastrointestinal symptoms. In more severe cases, there can also be headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and convulsions, according to the CDC. Pregnant women typically experience only mild, flu-like symptoms. However, infections during pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, or life-threatening infection of the newborn.
If you have legal questions about and illness, hospitalization or death associated with this outbreak, contact a listeria attorney at PritzkerOlsen P.A. for a free consultation.
Source: http://www.kdheks.gov/news/web_archives/2011/09222011a.htm
