Huntsville E. coli outbreak ends in death

WAFF.com reported this morning that one of the victims of an E. coli outbreak traced back to Little Rosie's Mexican restaurant in Huntsville, Alabama, has died.  The victim, whose name was not released, became ill with an E. coli infection in July, and developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a complication of E. coli infection.

The woman was one of the first to develop the E. Coli bacteria in her bloodstream in July, and had spent the last several weeks in the hospital.

The family says the bacteria acted at least as a catalyst in their loved one's death. She passed away at 12:15 Wednesday morning.

The only common denominator among the cases health department officials could find was shredded lettuce served at Little Rosie's, a Mexican restaurant in Huntsville.

Health officials have not yet released information on whether they were able to identify a specific food served at Little Rosie's that was the source of the E. coli outbreak. 

Huntsville child released from hospital after suffering E. coli, HUS

An article for the Huntsville Times gave an account of the homecoming of Samuel Coggin, a five-year-old boy who became ill with an E. coli O157:H7 infection and hemolytic uremic syndrome after eating at Little Rosie's restaurant in Huntsville.  Author Steve Doyle wrote:

It's a happy ending to what could have been a sad story. Samuel spent about three weeks on dialysis after the dangerous E. coli O157:H7 bacteria caused his kidneys to fail, a condition called hemolytic uremic syndrome.

The shy, soon-to-be kindergartner at Westminster Christian Academy lost about five pounds and hasn't fully regained his appetite. But his kidneys are nearly back to normal, and the stomach pain has disappeared, Samuel's mom, Rene' Coggin, said Tuesday.

"We're just glad to be home," she said as Samuel scurried around the living room in a black tyrannosaurus rex T-shirt.

Nineteen people became ill with E. coli infections after eating at Little  Rosie's Taqueria inn July.  Three people were hospitalized, including Samuel.  The other to people who developed HUS remain hospitalized.  One is in serious condition at Huntsville Hospital, and the other is hospitalized at Memorial Mission Hospital in Asheville, North Carolina.

Three still hospitalized with E. coli after eating at Little Rosie's

The Huntsville Times reported today on an outlying case of E. coli that was investigated as potentially linked to the E. coli outbreak linked to lettuce consumed at Little Rosie's restaurant in Huntsville.  While that case was ultimately determined to be unrelated to the Little Rosie's E. coli outbreak, the Times updated its report on three victims of the outbreak who were hospitalized.  The three remain hospitalized with hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS).  A recap on the outbreak from today's article:

Health officials say the Huntsville outbreak most likely was caused by contaminated lettuce served at Little Rosie's between June 27 and June 30. Eighteen of the 19 known victims ate at the popular Mexican restaurant on Whitesburg Drive on those dates; the other infected person did not eat at Little Rosie's and caught the bacteria another way.

Three Little Rosie's customers have been in the hospital since about July 4 undergoing dialysis for kidney damage.

Treatment for HUS is minimal, with doctors providing mostly supportive care for individuals who develop the syndrome.  Dialysis and plasmapheresis are two treatments physicians can use to help victims battle HUS.  From the About-HUS website:

There is no known therapy to halt the progression of Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome. The active stage of the disease usually lasts one to two weeks, during which a variety of complications are possible. HUS is a frightening illness that even in the best American medical facilities has a mortality rate of about 5%. By comparison, the mortality rate in the developing world is much higher. About 50% of patients require dialysis due to kidney failure, 25% develop pancreatitis, 25% experience seizures, and 5% suffer from diabetes mellitus. The majority of Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome patients requires transfusion of blood products and develops complications common to the critically ill. The illness is a living nightmare for the patients and families, and leaves a painful memory that lingers long after the acute illness had passed.

Among survivors of HUS, about five percent will eventually develop end stage kidney disease, with the resultant need for dialysis or transplantation, and another five to ten percent experience neurological or pancreatic problems which significantly impair quality of life. Since the longest available follow-up studies of HUS are about twenty (20) years, an accurate lifetime prognosis is not available, and as such, medical follow-up is indicated for even the mildest affected cases.