Cyclosporiasis outbreak has expanded to six more states
There are no new alerts at this time A massive cyclosporiasis outbreak linked to shredded iceberg lettuce has expanded to an additional six states, according to a source familiar with the matter. The outbreak, caused by a microscopic parasite found in human feces, is responsible for hundreds of hospitalizations and two deaths since early May. The newly linked states — Arkansas, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire and North Carolina — join Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, the source said, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services has reported 1,095 cases as of Sunday — more than double the number of cases it reported last week . The agency’s update marks a significant expansion in the outbreak of cyclosporiasis, a foodborne illness that often leads to watery, sometimes explosive, diarrhea.
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Scoop News DeskArkansas · Published Updated
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The newly linked cases, Ostroff said, may involve people who ate the recalled lettuce weeks ago but were only recently diagnosed and reported to health officials. “With an incubation period up to two weeks, there should no longer be people newly getting sick from that product,” Ostroff said. “But it takes a while for people to seek health care after onset, get tested and diagnosed, reported to state health departments and then to CDC.” “Think of it like solving a jigsaw puzzle,” he added. “You have all these pieces sitting there and the longer you work on it, the more likely it is you’ll figure out where each piece fits into the puzzle.” More than 22,000 people have confirmed or suspected cyclosporiasis and 517 people have been hospitalized in the multistate outbreak, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said late Tuesday.
