Cyclospora Picking Up Rear In Food-borne Illnesses Study

Posted on April 17, 2008 by Cyclospora Attorney

The FoodNet system gives a close up count on food-borne illnesses in states that contain about 45 million people or about 15 percent of the U.S. population.  The data on laboratory-confirmed cases of food-borne illnesses provides a way of comparing the incidents of one type of illness to another.

FoodNet shows Cyclospora is clearing bring up the rear when it comes to food-borne illnesses in the covered states of  Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon, and Tennessee, plus parts of California, Colorado, and New York. 

Here's how it stacks up according to the Center for Infectious Disease Research & Policy (CIDRAP) at the University of Minnesota:

A total of 17,883 foodborne infections were reported in 2007, up slightly from the 17,252 reported in 2006, according to the full FoodNet report published today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Salmonella led the list, with 6,790 confirmed cases (38% of the total), or 14.92 cases per 100,000 population. Case totals and rates per 100,000 population for the other pathogens were: Campylobacter, 5,818, 12.79; Shigella, 2,848, 6.26; Cryptosporidium, 1,216, 2.67; E coli O157:H7, 545, 1.20; Shiga toxin–producing E coli (STEC) non-O157:H7, 260, 0.57; Yersinia, 163, 0.36; Listeria, 122, 0.27; Vibrio, 108, 0.24; and Cyclospora, 13, 0.03.

Yes, that's 13 cases of Cyclospora for a rate of 0.03 per 100,000.  People returning from third world countries are usually said to be most at risk of Cyclospora.   And, as we learned a decade ago, all it takes for an large Cyclospora outbreak in the U.S. is to import the wrong berries from the wrong place.

 

 

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Pharma-YNG Offers TD Advice That Includes Cyclospora

Posted on February 12, 2008 by Cyclospora Attorney

Maybe its because we are thinking about a spring trip to some destination in South or Central America that an especially good write up on Travelers' Diarrhea caught our attention.  Its on a blog called Pharma-YNG and it includes just about all causes of TD with suggested treatements.

It includes this about treatment of TD caused by protozoa like cyclospora:

"The most common parasitic cause of TD is Giardia intestinalis, and treatment options include metronidazole, tinidazole, and nitazoxanide (10). Although cryptosporidiosis is usually a self-limited illness in immunocompetent persons, nitazox-anide can be considered as a treatment option. Cyclosporiasis is treated with TMP-SMX. Treatment of amebiasis is with metronidazole or tinidazole, followed by treatment with a luminal agent such as iodoquinol or paromomycin."

All in all, the Pharma-YNG summary of TD is very well done.

Its the sort of helpful advice that you might want to slip into your permanent travel file.   It can be found here.

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Africa Views Cyclospora

Posted on January 16, 2008 by Cyclospora Attorney
Cyclosporiasis is an emerging public health concern around the world and in Africa, reports the Makerere Medical School journal African Health Sciences.
 
 
The purpose of the article was to highlight cyclosporiasis and its relevance to public health in East Africa and Africa at large.  Among the findings:
 
In Sub Saharan Africa, cyclosporiasis has been reported in at least 3 countries, including Tanzania, in East Africa, occurring in both immunocompromised and immunocompetent patients. Zoonotic species of Cyclospora have also been identified in East African primates, indicating likely endemicity of this little reported disease in the region. This can be attributed to lack of awareness in the public and medical profession concerning the disease, and therefore not routinely checked at the health centres. Cyclosporiasis is characterized by intermittent diarrhoea, and secondary conditions or sequelae such as reactive arthritis syndrome (Reiter's syndrome), have been associated with progression of the disease. Its management is based on antibiotics, an unusual scenario for a protozoa.
 

The authors, who are all from Kenya, say that since Cyclospora became known to doctors in the 1970s,  it has created a rapidly changing situation.  They say that  "many aspects of this disease and its transmission remain an enigma."
 
The full text of the article, along with an abstract, can be found here.
 
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Cyclospora endemic in 27 countries listed here

Posted on December 31, 2007 by Cyclospora Attorney

If your international travel plans for 2008 include any of these counties---Bangladesh, Brazil, Chile, China, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Guatemala, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Mexico, Morocco, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Puerto Rico, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Zimbabwe ---then you should plan on combating Cyclospora.

Cyclospora is endemic in those 27 countries, according to Dr. William H. Shoff, Director of PENN Travel Medicine and the author of a 2007 article on Cyclospora found on Emedicine from WebMD.

Countries with many international travelers are the next category of concern for Dr. Shoff.  Those include: Australia, Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Japan, The Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the United States.  About 4 percent of those returning from an endemic country return with diarrhea.

Food-borne Cyclospora is also common in the U.S., Mexico, Canada, and Germany. Water-borne cases have been recorded in Chicago and Nepal. 

Dr. Shoff gives a straight description of this nasty little bug: "Cyclospora is a small bowel pathogen. After ingestion, Cyclospora oocysts excyst in the GI tract and invade small bowel epithelia, where they undergo asexual division followed by sexual division and produce mature oocysts that are shed in the stool."

We will continue to look for the medical news on Cyclospora, and we trust you will be careful during all your international travels!

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17,252 confirmed cases of food poisoning in 2006 in US

Posted on April 22, 2007 by Bill Marler

The CDC today released its preliminary 2006 food-borne illness data from 10 states: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, and Tennessee. A total of 17,252 confirmed cases (actual cases may be anywhere between 20 and 30 times the confirmed cases) of food-borne illness were reported in those states in 2006, according to the CDC. The most commonly reported illnesses were:

Salmonella: 6,655 cases

Campylobacter: 5,712 cases

Shigella: 2,736 cases

Cryptosporidium: 859 cases

E. coli O157: 590 cases

E. coli non-O157: 209 cases

Yersinia: 158 cases

Vibrio: 154 cases

Listeria: 138 cases

Cyclospora: 41 cases

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Foodborne Illnesses On The Rise

Posted on April 19, 2007 by Cyclospora Attorney

The Centers For Disease Control and Prevention have stated that the rate of some foodborne illnesses such as E. coli and salmonella in the United States are on the rise

A new report released by the United States government finds that the amounts of food born illnesses such as e. coli and salmonella are on the rise.

The report states that although it appears that e. coli and salmonella cases are on the rise, that other food born illnesses have leveled off when it comes to their infection prevalence rate.

Listeria, Shigella, Campylobacter, and Yersinia are all food born bacterial infections that according to data gathered from 10 states have fallen in prevalence since the 90's.

Keep reading here

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Cyclospora cayetanensis

Posted on January 18, 2007 by Cyclospora Lawyer

The blog, Messaged from the Outhouse, posted two pictures of Cyclospora in June of 2006. In addition to the photos, the blog's author included a short description of Cyclospora cayatenensis, which includes the following:

UV-light photography of Cyclospora cayatenensis, a human parasite only discovered in 1994 in Peru. This protozoon is transmitted via the faecal-oral route has been popping up all over the world, but seems to be most prevalent in tropical and subtropical regions. It causes a prolonged course of up to 12 weeks of watery diarrhoea, abdominal pain, fevers, muscle aches and flatulence, and, when untreated, can lapse regularly.

Visit the blog post to see the pictures of Cyclospora, which are said to look like a new galaxy.

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Be Healthy

Posted on January 11, 2007 by Cyclospora Lawyer

The Be Healthy blog write a recent article on food safety. The lessons to be learned were mostly related to food safety in summer, but the message can be applied year-round. See Be Healthy for the entire post. Here is an excerpt:

Many of the pathogens of greatest concern today (e.g., Campylobacter jejuni, Escherichia coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, Cyclospora cayetanensis) were not recognized as causes of foodborne illness just 20 years ago.

Do you know how long that potato salad has sat out? Do you know what may have stopped by to ‘visit’ your container of mayo salad dressing topping that’s on the table, next to the hot dogs? Never take food safety lightly. Just to emphasize the point, spend some time on this site from a mother who lost her daughter to food poisoning: http://www.geocities.com/tysca66/kelly.html.

Here are some tips how you can practice food safety at your summer barbeques and picnics:

  • Wash hands. Frequently wash your hands – before and after eating. If you anticipate no running water available where you are, be sure to pack a waterless hand sanitizer in your bag. Remind family members to do the same.
  • Check that cold foods are cold. Be certain that foods you are eating are as cold as they should be. Be sure bowls of cold food are nesting in bowls filled with ice.
  • Check how the meats are cooked. Before biting into a burger – break it open to be sure it looks thoroughly cooked – brown in the middle. Be sure you do not eat chicken that has pink inside.
  • Pay attention to how food is served. Check that each salad or plate of food has its own serving utensils.
  • Eat once food is served. Eating once food is brought out lessens the chance of bacteria growing as it sits out.
  • Ask your host. Finally – if you have any questions about how the food was prepared or how long something has been out – ASK. Chances are your host or hostess will want to assure you that she has taken appropriate food-safety precautions as she prepared for the barbecue."

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    Google - Cyclospora Search

    Posted on January 7, 2007 by Cyclospora Attorney

    1. Division of Parasitic Diseases - Cyclospora Infection
    Fact sheets and studies with cause, symptoms, prevention, and treatment.
    www.cdc.gov/node.do/id/0900f3ec80006cb4

    2. Cyclospora Facts - People most likely get cyclospora infection by eating food or drinking water.
    www.dhpe.org/infect/cyclospora.html

    3. Cyclospora cayetanensis – History
    www.k-state.edu/parasitology/cyclospora/cyclospora.html

    4. US FDA/CFSAN - Bad Bug Book - Cyclospora cayetanensis
    Provides basic facts about cyclospora cayetanensis.
    www.cfsan.fda.gov/~mow/cyclosp.html

    5. Cyclospora Parasite - Digestion and digestive-related information. Digestion information covering the digestion system and related diseases, procedures and tests, medications, and treatments.
    www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=570

    6. Food Research Institute Briefings: Cryptosporidium and Cyclospora. Few people, even in the medical establishment, knew much about Cyclospora and Cryptosporidium until recently. www.wisc.edu/fri/briefs/crypto.htm

    7. eMedicine - Cyclospora : Article by William H Shoff, MD, DTMandH. Cyclospora - Cyclospora cayetanensis (8-10 µm in diameter), a coccidian protozoan parasite, produces an intestinal infection.
    www.emedicine.com/MED/topic3393.htm

    8. Nebraska HHS System: Cyclospora Epidemiology Fact Sheet
    Cyclospora is a parasite that is composed of one cell.
    www.hhs.state.ne.us/epi/cyclosp.htm

    9. Cyclospora Lawyer & Attorney: Marler Clark: Cyclospora Blog
    Cyclosporiasis is a disease due to Cyclospora cayetanensis, an emerging coccidian.
    www.cyclosporablog.com

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    Cyclospora outbreak in Guatemala: a study

    Posted on November 27, 2006 by Cyclospora Lawyer

    A recent study titled, "Cyclosporiasis: a point source outbreak acquired in Guatemala," appears in the No vember-December 2006 Journal of Travel Medicine. The following is an abstract:

    "Cyclosporiasis is a disease due to Cyclospora cayetanensis, an emerging coccidian parasite first described in 1979. It is an orally transmitted disease that is more frequent in tropical and subtropical areas. Cyclospora cayetanensis has been mainly described as a cause of travelers' diarrhea. This pathogen has given rise to a number of epidemic outbreaks attributable to ingestion of imported foods, particularly from tropical areas. Methods. Descriptive study of clinical and epidemiological data of a small epidemic outbreak of C cayetanensis-induced gastroenteritis. Results. Seven confirmed cases of C cayetanensis among Spanish nationals who had traveled to Antigua Guatemala are described. The incubation period was 6 days. Diarrhea, asthenia, anorexia, borborygmi, flatulence, and abdominal distension were present in all cases. Fever and heart burn in 85.7%. Weight loss in 71.4%. Abdominal pain, rectal tenesmus, and nausea in 42.8%. Vomiting and eructation in 14.2%. Heart burn was a frequent symptom, a finding not often previously described. The infection was probably acquired from raspberry juice. All cases improved with trimethoprim/sulphametoxazol. Conclusions. Cyclosporiasis is a cause of travelers' diarrhea. Parasitology laboratories must be advised of clinical suspicion of cyclosporiasis so that they can conduct a suitable targeted study; otherwise, false negative results may arise."

    More information about the Journal of Travel Medicine can be found on the Blackwell Publishing Web site.

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