Published Date: 1999-07-07 23:50:00
Subject: PRO/EDR> E. coli O111, diarrhea - USA (Texas)
Archive Number: 19990707.1134

E. COLI O111, DIARRHEA - USA (TEXAS)
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A ProMED-mail post
<http://www.healthnet.org/programs/promed.html>
Date: Wed, 7 Jul 1999 7:35:03 EDT
From: David Acheson <david.acheson@es.nemc.org>
Source: Texas Dept. of Health news release, 4 Jul 1999

[I thought you may be interested in this from the Texas Department of
Health which is the first report of a large outbreak in the United States
of a non-O157:H7 Shiga toxin-producing _E. coli_. _E. coli_ O111 that
produces Shiga toxins has been found increasingly in association with
sporadic disease in the U.S. and has been the cause of large outbreaks in
other parts of the world. - DA]

Bacteria That Caused Drill Team Camp Illnesses Identified
The bacterium _Escherichia coli_ O111 has been identified as the cause of
an outbreak of diarrheal illness in 52 people who attended a drill team
camp at the University of North Texas in Denton early last month.
The Texas Department of Health (TDH) laboratory in Austin identified the
bacteria as _Escherichia coli_, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) determined Friday that the serotype was O111.
Health officials said _E. coli O111_ has caused isolated illnesses in the
United States and has caused illness outbreaks in Europe and Australia.
Health officials are continuing to investigate the drill team camp outbreak
and hope to pinpoint a source of the illnesses. They said no new illnesses
have been found in the last 12 days. The latest drill team camp participant
to become ill got sick on June 22.
Similar to _E. coli_ O157:H7, which has caused several illness outbreaks in
the United States in recent years, _E. coli_ O111 lives in the intestinal
tract of cattle. Infected humans can spread the bacteria via a fecal-oral
transmission route.
General precautions against _E. coli_ infections include thorough hand
washing before preparing or serving foods or drinks and after changing a
diaper, thoroughly washing raw fruits and vegetables and thoroughly cooking
meats to an internal temperature of 160 F.
Symptoms of _E. coli_ infection can include severe abdominal cramps,
diarrhea, bloody diarrhea, fever, headaches, nausea and vomiting.
TDH, CDC, the U.S. Food Safety Inspection Service, the Tarrant County
Health Department and the Denton County Health Department are investigating
the outbreak.
--
David Acheson
Tufts University - New England Medical Center
Boston, MA 02111
e-mail: david.acheson@es.nemc.org
......................................es
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