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Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Dog Food
Certain Diamond Pet Foods products have been recalled due to contamination with the bacterium Salmonella Infantis
CDC podcast on this topicAt least fourteen people in nine states have been infected with Salmonella Infantis as a result of contact with contaminated dry dog food, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Although no deaths have been reported, five of the patients were hospitalized. Those infected range in age from less than one year to 82 years old. No dogs have been reported sickened.
CDC determined that all of the ill individuals had handled dry Diamond Pet Foods produced in one Gaston, South Carolina, plant. A list of products recalled can be found on this Food & Drug Administration (FDA) website and on the Diamond Pet website. Pet owners can learn how to… READ MORE >>
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Doctor, Nurse: Have You Washed Your Hands?
This downloadable poster for healthcare providers is available on the CDC website in English or Spanish. Would you consider presenting it to your healthcare provider?
It’s a well-known fact that hand-washing is one of the most important measures for reducing the spread of infection. Yet, healthcare workers, of all people, often fail to wash their hands! One potential approach to this problem is to encourage patients, before submitting to treatment, to confirm verbally that doctors and nurses have indeed washed their hands. But a new pilot study published in the Journal Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology finds many patients are reluctant to question the hand hygiene of medical personnel.
According to an article on the study in Infection Control Today, patients in an Australian hospital were provided a brochure giving them… READ MORE >>
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The Jensen Farms Cantaloupe Outbreak: How to Avoid Repeating a Tragedy
Chlorinated wash water used during cantaloupe processing can help reduce the risk of foodborne illness to consumers.Last summer a family-owned farm in Colorado became the focal point of the largest foodborne illness outbreak in the US in 25 years. Tragically, cantaloupe contaminated with Listeria bacteria sickened 146 people in 28 states, killed 30 and caused one pregnant woman to miscarry, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) concluded the outbreak likely could have been prevented if Jensen Farms had maintained its facilities in accordance with existing voluntary FDA guidance. FDA has no enforceable regulations on cantaloupe processing, and farm facility auditors conducting inspections do not consider FDA voluntary guidance when scoring facilities. Scores can be lowered only if practices are inconsistent with FDA regulations. That could,… READ MORE >>
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CDC’s Healthy Swimming Video Contest: Promote Healthy Swimming & Be Eligible to Win $1,000!
A guest blog by CDC’s Michele Hlavsa, RN, MPH
CDC’s Healthy Swimming Program provides information to the public, health professionals, and pool operators on a variety of topics to promote healthy and safe swimming experiences. As the summer pool season begins, we are excited to announce…
CDC’s First-Ever Healthy Swimming Video ContestThis year, to help prevent the spread of germs in swimming pools, hot tubs, interactive fountains, lakes, or oceans, the CDC’s Healthy Swimming Program is asking the public to help them educate swimmers by making a short, creative video describing the simple steps everyone can take to ensure healthy swimming experiences. This video contest is being launched in conjunction with Recreational Water Illness and Injury Prevention Week (RWIIPW), May 23–29, 2011. RWIIPW is a national observance that focuses on educating swimmers and pool operators about healthy and safe swimming and is currently celebrating its 7th year.
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In Haiti and Pakistan, the Ground and Water are Stagnant but the Waterborne Diseases are on a Rampage?
World Water Week just ended and, this year, Mother Nature is proving to be one of the most powerful obstacles to clean water. This year, two natural disasters have resulted in two human tragedies a half a world apart. The origin of one disaster was in the ground; the other in the sky. But the distressing toll taken on the people of both Haiti and Pakistan is much the same in terms of lives lost, suffering, economic losses, injuries, and the threat of subsequent diseases.
The earthquake that devastated Haiti in January claimed the lives of nearly a quarter of a million people and destroyed much of the country’s infrastructure. Meanwhile, more than2,000 people lost their lives in the Pakistani floods this summer while an estimated 21 million were injured or left homeless according to the United Nations. Unfortunately, nature’s second act is proving to be just as cruel.
According to a report… READ MORE >>
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Waterborne Diseases Cost US $500 Million a Year
According to new research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), hospitalizations from three common and preventable waterborne diseases – Legionnaire’s disease, cryptosporidiosis and giardiasis – could cost the U.S an estimated $539 million dollars each year. These figures represent only a fraction of all waterborne disease costs. They underscore the large and hidden burden of waterborne disease including direct federal and state expenditures associated with contaminated drinking water and recreational water. Modest investment in waterborne disease prevention programs in the U.S. could lead to significant healthcare cost savings.
According to the study, “These cost data highlight that water-related diseases pose not only a physical burden to the thousands of people sickened by them each year, but also a substantial burden in health care costs, including direct government payments through Medicare and Medicaid,” says Michael Beach of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Using data from… READ MORE >>
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British student invents new way of purifying water without electricity
A British student has invented a new device that will convert contaminated water into safe drinking water. Oxfordshire-based student James Bartlett designed an inexpensive and simple chlorination unit that functions without electricity and can be manufactured for less than $3.
The chlorination unit, named BlueDrop, works by harnessing the Venturi effect, which is used in carburetors to pull gasoline into an engine’s air stream. In Bartlett’s design, water passing through a tube will take in chlorine, which kills or inactivates pathogenic bacteria and viruses that are commonly found in contaminated water supplies. Adding chlorine is one of the cheapest and safest ways of disinfecting contaminated water.
The BlueDrop, designed by Bartlett while studying Industrial Design at Brunel University, was runner-up in the Xerox Innovation Award, presented to Student inventors.
More than 1.5 billion people around the globe do not have access to safe drinking water, anddiseases associated with contaminated drinking water kill more than 25,000 people… READ MORE >>
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Campylobacter Bacteria Found in Utah Drinking Water
Last month, the City of Saratoga Springs, Utah, issued a boil water order for the northern half of the city after Campylobacter bacteria were discovered in the city’s drinking water system. At least 15 people became ill with confirmed Campylobacteriosis, and the Utah County Health Department received additional reports of illness including nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and stomach cramps consistent with Campylobacter infection.
On May 13, city officials issued the order advising residents, schools, commercial businesses, and all other users of the drinking water system to boil their water for at least one minute or use bottled water while measures were taken to flush the water system of any pathogens from the system.
Health Department officials flushed the drinking water system the following day and added chlorine to kill any remaining bacteria, conducted testing for coliform bacteria, and lifted the boil order on May 15 after test results came back negative for bacteria.
According to Dr. Joseph Miner of… READ MORE >>
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Russian Poultry Contaminated with Salmonella
In January, Russia began blocking imports of U.S. poultry because of concerns about chlorine rinses, which are routinely used by poultry processors in the United States to kill pathogens that can cause food poisoning among consumers.
According to a Russian consumer rights group, 80 percent of poultry meat in Moscow is contaminated with salmonella bacteria. The discovery was made when the group conducted tests on chicken meat sold at a large supermarket chain across the capital. Independent laboratory analysis showed eight chickens out of 10 had bacteria living on their skin, and one sample also had bacteria deep inside the muscles, which means that the bird must have been very ill when it was killed. These disturbing findings are directly linked to the inadequate disinfecting procedures at Russian poultry factories following the ban on the use of chlorine in the disinfection process.
Although chlorine is a safe and effective disinfectant for use… READ MORE >>
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Anniversary of Walkerton Tragedy is Strong Reminder
Last Sunday marked the 10 year anniversary of the E. coli outbreak that was caused by contamination of the water supply in Walkerton, Ontario. In May of 2000, more than half of the town’s 5,000 residents became severely sick and seven people died as a result of bacteria laden water.
The drinking water supply became tainted when cow manure washed into a well that was vulnerable to contamination. The tragedy might have been prevented if animal access had been restricted in the watershed. To make matters worse, however, officials at the Walkerton Public Utilities Commission had received E.coli bacteria test results that showed unsafe levels of contamination, but concealed them for a number of days before finally alerting the public to the unsafe water.
An independent commission reported that operators at the Walkerton Public Utilities Commission had engaged in a host of improper operating practices for years, including failing to use adequate doses of chlorine, failing to… READ MORE >>
