An E. coli O157:H7 outbreak has been traced to a Sidney, Nebraska, day care center. The Associated Press reported that at least four children between the ages of nine and 18 months who were being cared for in the Blues Clues Room at Here Wee Grow day care center in Sidney have become ill with E. coli infections. Three children were hospitalized; two remain in the hospital, one has been released.
www.about-ecoli.com provides information related to the symptoms and risks associated with E. coli O157:H7 infection, how E. coli is detected, possible ways to prevent infection, and recent news associated with outbreaks. Nearly ten percent of children who become ill with E. coli O157:H7 infections develop hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a complication that can cause kidney failure as well as damage to the pancreas, liver, brain, and heart. In fact, HUS is now recognized as the most common cause of childhood kidney failure. Children with HUS can develop medical conditions such as high blood pressure or diabetes, and often require medical monitoring and treatment throughout the rest of their lives.
“Most people have heard of E. coli, but until someone they know falls victim during an outbreak, they don’t realize how devastating E. coli infection and HUS can be,” said William Marler, a Seattle attorney who has represented hundreds of victims of E. coli outbreaks. “That’s where the information on these sites comes in.”
The Panhandle Public Health Department, Nebraska Department of Health, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are working together to investigate the source of the outbreak. “At this point, it’s not clear how the bacterium was spread at the day care; however, any day care operator should have measures in place to prevent the spread of diarrheal illness at their facility,” Marler continued. “A recent outbreak at a day care center in Tennessee was traced to a child who was allowed to remain in attendance at the day care even though they had diarrhea for four days.”
Marler and the attorneys at Marler Clark have represented dozens of children who have become sick with E. coli O157:H7 and other pathogenic bacteria while attending day care. The firm recently settled the case of a Missouri child who suffered an E. coli infection and HUS after being exposed to the E. coli bacterium at a day care center in Joplin, Missouri. The firm has also represented children in Texas and California who became ill with E. coli and HUS after exposures at day care centers. For more information, contact Suzanne Schreck at (206) 346-1879 or sschreck@marlerclark.com.