Just over a decade ago, public knowledge surrounding E.coli O157:H7 was limited largely to the 1993 mess in which three children died after eating hamburgers at a Jack in the Box restaurant in Washington state. Looking back now, Vancouver resident Anne Nickerson says that she had heard of the illness but she certainly had no
Are E. coli O157:H7 illnesses going down?
SafeTables.org reported this week that the United States Department of Agriculture’s newly released data shows a precipitous drop, not in illnesses, but in ground beef samples that tested positive for E. coli O157:H7 in 2004 – the second such drop the USDA has announced in two years. S.T.O.P. members are simultaneously hopeful and troubled because
E. coli a Risk for Recreational Swimmers
Alex Cukan, UPI Science Writer, reports on the health threats of recreational swimming:
There is a growing U.S. public health threat from recreational water illnesses caused by germs such as cryptosporidium, shigella, and E. coli O157:H7.
“People need to keep in mind they share the water with everyone else in the
E. coli: secret danger of playing in the countryside
Helen Puttick, a Health Correspondent for Hands Clean, did a story this week on a two-year-old boy sickened with E. coli from what was supposed to be a fun playdate on the farm.
“… a few carefree moments exploring the countryside of East Lothian as a small child has forever changed the life of
E. coli Legal Cases
North Carolina: State Fair E. coli O157:H7 Litigation
Marler Clark, and a well respected Asheville, NC attorney, will filed a lawsuit in Wake County Superior Court against Jason and Ralph Wilkie, owners and operators of the Crossroads Farm Petting Zoo, the petting zoo linked to an E. coli O157:H7 outbreak at the North Carolina State Fair in October. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of four children who suffered from E. coli infections after visiting the Crossroads Farm petting zoo at the State Fair.Continue Reading E. coli Legal Cases
Marler Clark Client Brianne Kiner, Jack in the Box E. coli Survivor
A rise in the number of Escherichia coli cases requires diligent detection efforts, Debby Giusti, MT(ASCP) in a recent article by journalist Debby Giusti about Marler Clark client Brianne Kiner.
Ten-year-old Brianne Kiner spent 40 days in a coma in 1993, while teams of medical personnel worked round-the-clock to keep her alive. Brianne has little memory of the 118 days she was on kidney dialysis or the 80 units of blood she received, nor does she recall the numerous times the doctors told her mother that Brianne wouldn’t live through the night. What Brianne does remember is that her hospital ordeal left her with the dubious recognition of being the sickest child in the United States to survive Escherichia coli 0157:H7.1
Over a 3-month period, more than 700 children and adults in four states in the northwest became ill after eating at various Jack in the Box restaurants. They suffered severe stomach cramps and diarrhea, often bloody, and close to 200 of the ill had to be hospitalized. Fifty-five cases progressed into hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a condition that can lead to kidney failure and even death. Children and the elderly are most at risk for HUS, and in the 1993 outbreak, four children died.2
Epidemiologists quickly recognized that those infected had eaten undercooked hamburgers served at more than 90 Jack in the Box restaurants in the four state area.2 The beef shipped to the restaurants was found to be contaminated with E. coli 0157, and to date, the outbreak remains the largest in U.S. history caused by the organism.
In the week of her exposure, Brianne had visited the same Jack in the Box twice, eating a hamburger each time. The double dose no doubt compounded the severity of her case. Some speculate that if the burgers had been cooked only 30 seconds longer, Brianne would not have become ill.
Spending nearly 2 months in the pediatric intensive care unit of Seattle Children’s Hospital and Medical Center and a total of 189 days in the hospital, Brianne suffered three strokes, 10,000 seizures and every organ in her body failed. Her initial hospital bill totaled $1.2 million.1 No matter what the cost, her mother calls her daughter’s survival a miracle. The medical staff believes Brianne’s age helped her win the fight against the terrible pathogen.Continue Reading Marler Clark Client Brianne Kiner, Jack in the Box E. coli Survivor
Soap cleans up in study
Jessica Rocha of the News Observer‘s recent article “Soap Cleans Up In Study” says:
The tried-and-true method of keeping hands clean turns out to be better than new-fangled antibacterial gels and hand wipes at getting rid of bacteria and viruses – even if it’s just a 10-second splash.
That’s the word from researchers at
UC expert forecasts microbial food safety regulations
Even though California’s fresh produce industries have a good record in voluntary compliance, federal regulations for microbial food-safety are on their way, according to University of California postharvest specialist Trevor Suslow.
Speaking to a group of vegetable growers and PCAs there recently, Trevor Suslow said the regulatory climate has been shaped by national consumer concerns after well-publicized outbreaks of Salmonella, E. coli O157:H7, and other microorganisms.
Suslow said he is “trying to build awareness of coming mandatory GAPs,” or good agricultural practices, for microbial food-safety in fresh-market fruits and vegetables, just like those now required for chemical or physical safety.
GAPs, he explained, are becoming a common marketing tool expected by food-safety conscious buyers, and “there’s an expectation for record keeping that was not common 10 years ago.”Continue Reading UC expert forecasts microbial food safety regulations
About E. coli O157:H7
E. coli O157:H7 was identified for the first time at the CDC in 1975, but it was not until seven years later, in 1982, that E. coli O157:H7 was conclusively determined to be a cause of enteric disease. Following outbreaks of foodborne illness that involved several cases of bloody diarrhea, E. coli O157:H7 was firmly associated with hemorrhagic colitis.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated in 1999 that 73,000 cases of E. coli O157:H7 occur each year in the United States. Approximately 2,000 people are hospitalized, and 60 people die as a direct result of E. coli O157:H7 infections and complications. The majority of infections are thought to be foodborne-related, although E.coli O157:H7 accounts for less than 1% of all foodborne illness.Continue Reading About E. coli O157:H7
Further Research Studies Support E. coli Cattle Vaccine Efficacy
Today Bioniche Life Sciences Inc. a research-based, technology-driven Canadian biopharmaceutical company, announced that positive results were seen in the three latest University of Nebraska feedlot studies utilizing the E. coli O157:H7 cattle vaccine.
In one study, with cattle receiving three doses of vaccine, there were 73% fewer animals detectably shedding E. coli O157:H7