Seventeen people have been infected including six hospitalized in an E. coli outbreak detected in seven states, a new report has revealed.
The states reporting cases of the especially nasty strain are Washington, Idaho, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Connecticut, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notice published this week.
The specific strain causing the illnesses reported beginning in mid-March has been identified as Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O157:H7.
The CDC and officials in affected states are working to determine the source of the outbreak that has the potential to spread in coming weeks.
Six people have been hospitalized and 17 have been infected with a dangerous strain of E. coli across seven states including New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Washington
E. coli bacteria are typically found in foods such as undercooked meat or raw vegetables that have been contaminated with fecal matter.
It can also be transmitted if a person who is carrying the bacteria doesn’t wash their after using the bathroom and then processes or prepares food.
Symptoms including bloody diarrhea, severe stomach cramps and vomiting commonly appear three to four days after ingesting the harmful bacteria and usually clear up within a week.
However, in five to 10 percent of cases the strain can lead to a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome.
The CDC has said these complications are is more common older adults, young children and those with weakened immune systems.
Signs of HUS include fever, abdominal pain, pale skin tone, fatigue and irritability, small, unexplained bruises or bleeding from the nose and mouth, and decreased urination.
Health officials have been working to identify where the outbreak is stemming from by interviewing those infected and performing lab tests.
‘It can be very difficult to determine where someone got sick,’ a statement from the New Jersey Department of Health said.
‘Individuals could have eaten a number of meals in a number of places before becoming ill. They could have eaten at several restaurants, at home or eaten food purchased at a supermarket. Sometimes the food source associated with illness is never determined.’
Since March 22 cases have been reported in New Jersey, four in Idaho, two in Connecticut and Pennsylvania and one in Missouri, Ohio and Washington, according to the latest CDC report.
In January a larger E. coli outbreak linked to romaine lettuce was reported in 13 states, resulting in 58 hospitalizations and one death.