Hundreds of Americans have gotten sick from strain of salmonella thought to be spreading from cucumbers
Thousands of Americans have gotten sick from salmonella so far this year—including hundreds who were infected by a strain of the bacteria thought to be spreading through contaminated cucumbers.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said this week it is investigating a multistate outbreak of Salmonella Poona infections, with 341 people infected in 30 states, including 56 people infected since Sept. 4. So far, 70 people have been hospitalized and two people have died from the illness. Slightly over half of the people infected were under age 18.
The CDC says its investigation traced the likely source of the outbreak to cucumbers from Mexico that were distributed via the company Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce. The agency says 68% of the 134 people interviewed in the outbreak say they ate cucumbers the week before they got sick.
Salmonella, a bacteria that makes people sick when ingested, can induce diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps.
This is not the first time there has been a salmonella outbreak in multiple U.S. states. Below is a graphic of salmonella incidence rates throughout the U.S. this year.
[findthebest id=”f1xWHSmcVSJ” title=”Salmonella Cases in 2015″ width=”600″ height=”475″ url=”https://w.graphiq.com/w/f1xWHSmcVSJ” link=”http://conditions.healthgrove.com” link_text=”Salmonella Cases in 2015 | HealthGrove”]
Consumers can find out more about the current outbreak and investigation, here.