Category Archives: ECDC

European Epdiemiological Report into the Salmonella Stanley Outbreak 2012

Posted on February 8, 2013 by | Leave a comment

ECDCecdclogo

In July 2012, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) initiated a Europe-wide investigation on a Salmonella Stanley outbreak, together with the affected Member States, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Reference Laboratory for Salmonella (EURL Salmonella). Cases were associated with strains showing an indistinguishable PFGE pattern not previously reported in Europe.

Between July and September 2012, ECDC encouraged European Union (EU) and other European Economic Area (EEA) Member States to perform Xbal-PFGE typing on all S. Stanley human isolates. The image profile of the outbreak strain was shared with all EU countries. ECDC collected and analysed molecular typing data on S. Stanley from EU/EEA Member States to explore potential sources of infection within the food production chain in this multi-country outbreak.

Full report at the link above.

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Posted in Bacteria, ECDC, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Technology, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Hand Washing, Hygiene, Illness, Methods, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, Salmonella

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UK/Germany/Netherlands – Increase in Cryptosporidium Notifications in 2012

Posted on November 20, 2012 by | Leave a comment

ECDC

An increase in Cryptodsporidim notifications has been observed in the UK, Netherlands and Germany since August 2012 that is likely to be real and not due to surveillance or notifcations artifacts.

The available information from investigations in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Germany indicates that there is not a single, common source, but rather a combination of several causes. These may include climatic drivers, such as the increased rainfall in the summer of 2012 in these countries or a widely distributed commonly consumed product. There is however no evidence for it at this stage and further investigations are ongoing.

 The overall threat for the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) is considered to be low.

 EU/EEA Member States should be alert to an increase in cases as observed in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Germany, particularly in relation to immunocompromised and other at-risk groups as they may present with a more severe manifestation of cryptosporidiosis.

 

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Posted in Cryptosporidium, ECDC, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Microbiology, Parasite, Pathogen, Research, Water

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ECDC – Salmonella Stanley Outbreak

Posted on July 31, 2012 by | Leave a comment

ECDC

Following an increase in the number of reported human infections with Salmonella entrica serovar Stanley in some European countries, ECDC issued a rapid risk assessment.

Up to 26 July 2012, 60 Salmonella Stanley cases (32 from Hungary, 20 from Belgium, eight from Germany) were reported from EU/EEA countries.

Although most Salmonella Stanley cases are related to travel to south-east Asia, the increase of infections reported in three EU countries in 2012 is not related to international travel. The occurrence of one single PFGE pattern of strains isolated from different countries suggests in fact a common source, which has not yet been identified; potential vehicles might be food, feed, or contact. Investigations are ongoing and it is likely that more cases will be identified. However, the impact on public health across the EU is considered to be limited.

Member States are encouraged to perform PFGE testing on all recent isolates of Salmonella Stanley to increase the possibility of identifying potential vehicles of infection. ECDC will continue to closely monitor this event and will update the risk assessment as soon as new relevant information becomes available.

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Posted in Bacteria, ECDC, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Hygiene, Illness, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, Salmonella

Climate Change – Influences Pathogen Outbreaks?

Posted on April 2, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News 

To me this seems to be a reasonably logical assumption and this report attempts to back that up.

The transmission of foodborne pathogens may be impacted by the effects of climate change, according to a report released March 28 by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

Studying hundreds of peer-reviewed publications on six different food- and waterborne pathogens, the report’s authors observed 1,653 “key facts” that link the viability of those pathogens to a range of climatic variables such as air temperature, water temperature and precipitation. The pathogens under study included Campylobacter, Listeria, Salmonella, Norovirus, Cryptosporidium and non-cholera Vibrio.

Link to Report : Free Report

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Posted in Bacteria, ECDC, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Pathogen, Research

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Climate change: Potential Impacts on Food- and Waterborne Diseases in the EU

Posted on March 28, 2012 by | Leave a comment

ECDC 

ECDC issued the report ‘Assessing the potential impacts of climate change on food- and waterborne diseases in Europe’.

This report identifies the relationships between meteorological and climate variables and six food- and waterborne pathogens, by reviewing existing literature, in order to assess the potential impacts of climate change on food- and waterborne disease transmission in the EU.

Publication Link – Free of Charge

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Posted in Bacteria, ECDC, EFSA, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Safety, Food Technology, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Pathogen