Public health officials in Finland are monitoring an increase in Yersinia infections seen so far in 2024.
168 Yersinia enterocolitica cases have been reported to the Infectious Disease Register compared to 64 cases from January to April 2023.
The National Institute of Health and Welfare (THL) said it had received two suspected outbreak alerts in April and reports about increased Yersinia enterocolitica infections from Pirkanmaa, Uusimaa, and Ostrobothnia.
Kaohsiung, April 28 (CNA) The number of people who have sought medical attention for suspected food poisoning symptoms after dining at an upscale buffet restaurant in Kaohsiung on Friday has increased to 46, the city’s health authorities said Sunday.
Since Saturday, when 11 diners were reported to have fallen ill, another 35 people have come down with food poisoning symptoms, the Kaohsiung City Health Department said in press release.
The Department said Saturday it had sent food safety inspectors to the Hi-Lai Harbour (漢來海港) restaurant branch at Kaohsiung Arena, after being notified of the incident by a hospital where one of the diners was being treated.
At the restaurant in Zuoying District, the health inspectors collected 20 samples of food items and from its kitchen, including salads, oysters and sashimi, and they found signs of cross-contamination between raw and cooked foods, the department said.
Posted in Food Illness, Food Poisoning, Foodborne Illness, Illness, Poisoning
Since mid-March, 40 patients have been registered ill with the same type of salmonella. These are 24 men and 16 women aged 0-83. The first investigations show that the patients have not been travelling, have not eaten at the same restaurants and have not taken part in any joint events. As the patients live throughout the country, it therefore suggests that it is a food that has been sold in supermarkets across the country.
“We are working to find out what is to blame for the outbreak. Preliminary investigations indicate that the source of infection could be minced meat sold in supermarkets,” says epidemiologist Luise Müller, Statens Serum Institut.
Annette Perge from the Danish Food and Drug Administration elaborates:
“Although we do not yet know for sure what has made people sick with salmonella, we would like consumers to pay extra attention to good kitchen hygiene. It is important to cook the minced meat thoroughly, keep the ready-to-eat separate from the raw meat and refrain from tasting the raw meat,” she says.
All patients are infected with the same type of salmonella bacteria.
“Salmonella of the type Typhimurium has previously been found in meat from cattle and pigs as well as in foreign poultry products and has previously given rise to disease outbreaks,” says senior researcher Marianne Sandberg from the DTU Food Institute.
Dr. Mohammed Al-Abdali, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health, announced that the number of food poisoning cases linked to a specific restaurant in Riyadh has increased to 35.
Of these, 27 cases are currently receiving intensive care, while 6 individuals have recovered and two have been discharged after necessary medical treatment.
The Ministry has taken measures to prevent further incidents by collaborating with relevant authorities to conduct thorough epidemiological investigations. This proactive approach aims to minimize risks and ensure rapid response to any similar future events.
Riyadh Municipality took immediate action by closing the implicated restaurant as well as its branches and central laboratory for further investigations to ascertain the cause of the outbreak. These closures are part of a comprehensive set of precautions aimed at safeguarding public health.
Posted in Food Illness, Food Poisoning, Foodborne Illness, Illness, Poisoning
There are now 96 lab-confirmed cases linked to the current E. coli outbreak in Calgary daycare centres, the AHS confirmed in a press conference Wednesday.
Dr. Francesco Rizzuti, medical officer of health with AHS Calgary zone said that of the 96 cases there have been 22 hospitalizations thus far.
Sixteen of those patients are currently at the Alberta Children’s Hospital, while six are at the Peter Lougheed Centre. AHS confirmed that all of those hospitalized are children.
A shellfish shakedown is sweeping through San Diego County after 33 people fell ill, contracting norovirus likely linked to frozen raw oysters imported from a company in South Korea, health officials said.
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) is sounding the alarm, telling distributors and retailers to halt sales and service of frozen raw oysters from JBR, Inc., located in Tongyeongsi, Republic of Korea; these shellfish are suspected culprits behind a string of gastroenteritis cases among eaters in late March and April. These specific oysters arrived bearing the label “Amazing Sea Brand.” They have been traced back to being harvested on several dates—November 26, 2023, January 4, and February 15—and San Diego County public health officials, alongside the CDPH’s investigation, pointed to these as the likely source of the virus transmission, according to a statement obtained by the California Department of Public Health.
Nearly 200 people got sick in norovirus outbreaks on Princess Cruises and Royal Caribbean International ships.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said 94 of the 2,532 guests on Sapphire Princess reported being ill during its April 5 cruise, along with 20 crew members. The round-trip cruise, which left from Los Angeles with stops in Hawaii and the South Pacific, will end on May 7, according to CruiseMapper.
On Royal Caribbean’s Radiance of the Seas, 67 of its 1,993 guests reported being ill in addition to two crew members during a cruise that ended April 22, according to the CDC. The two-week voyage sailed from Tampa, Florida to Los Angeles with stops in countries like Colombia and Panama, according to CruiseMapper.
In both outbreaks, the guests and crew members’ main symptoms were diarrhea and vomiting.
Posted in Food Illness, Foodborne Illness, Illness, Norovirus, Norovirus Cruise
A norovirus outbreak at a New York restaurant was traced back to sick food handlers, some of whom were unaware of the location’s paid sick leave policy, researchers reported at the CDC’s annual Epidemic Intelligence Service conference.
“In December, we received three reports of gastrointestinal illness in patrons [who] dined with a Manhattan restaurant. They were patrons [who] had been part of two different parties that dined on two different days at the same restaurant,” Leah D. Seifu, MD, MPH, Epidemic Intelligence Service with the CDC assigned to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, told Healio. “So, we, at the health department decided to investigate these reports of gastrointestinal illness.”
Posted in food handler, Food Illness, Foodborne Illness, Hand Washing, Illness, Norovirus
Eighty people who attended a Teduray tribal wedding reception Thursday in South Upi, Maguindanao del Sur were rushed to two hospitals after they suffered severe stomach pain and vomiting.
Dr. Mohammad Ariff Baguindali, chief of Integrated Provincial Health Office of Maguindanao said that until late afternoon on Thursday rescue teams and health officials were busy attending to the patients at Rural Health Unit Hospital in South Upi, Maguindanao del Sur and Datu Blah Sinsuat District Hospital in Upi, Maguindanao del Norte.
“Sixty-five persons were sent to RHU South Upi and 15 to Datu Blah Hospital,” Baguindali said.
Based on the initial findings of the health officials, a spoiled chicken dish cooked in spices and coconut milk as its main ingredient called “beniton” could have triggered the food poisoning.
Baguindali said the intense day heat could have spoiled the tribe’s specialty dish. He noted that it was cooked in the morning and eaten in the late afternoon.
Abstract
A prolonged genomic cluster of 20 human Listeria monocytogenes ST1607 infections has been reported to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, with cases identified in Denmark (17), Germany (1), and Italy (2) since 2019. The number of cases has sharply increased after 2021. The most recent case was reported in March 2024 in Denmark, indicating an ongoing risk of further infections. Of 20 listeriosis cases, five have died (one due to another cause than L. monocytogenes infection), indicating high severity of infection
particularly among elderly people with underlying chronic conditions.
The national investigations the traceability and genomic data analyses revealed the detection of five matching L. monocytogenes ST1607 isolates from four sliced smoked salmon products (four batches) produced by the Danish Processing Plant A between 2021 and 2024. These contaminated products were distributed to the three countries (Denmark, Germany, and Italy) reporting human cases to ECDC. The identification of the outbreak
strain from the environment of the Danish Processing Plant A in 2023 and in the products since 2021 indicates the persistence of the L. monocytogenes ST1607 within the plant and suggests that the point(s) of the contamination in the plant have not been identified and controlled. Although control measures had been implemented at the plant and withdrawals and recalls of contaminated batches were performed, new batches of contaminated products could still be placed on the market until the site(s) at the plant and the root(s) of the contamination in the fish production chain are identified and properly controlled.
Based on the available information from case interviews, microbiological and traceability analysis, the conclusion is that sliced smoked salmon products are the likely sources of infection. New cases could occur in EU/EEA countries, particularly among vulnerable people, until the root(s) of contaminations are identified and corrective measures are implemented.
FoodWorld 