Erie County’s cyclosporiasis outbreak continues to worsen as six county residents have been hospitalized due to the parasite-caused gastrointestinal illness.
They are the first reported hospitalizations due to the outbreak, which has infected at least 159 people in the county, according to the Erie County Department of Health. No deaths have been reported.
“We have seen one presumed case at Saint Vincent,” said Dr. Tim Pelkowski, an AHN Saint Vincent family physician and member of the county Board of Health. “It’s a presumed case because the testing hasn’t come back but other family members have reported being ill.”
Additionally, the Allegheny County Health Department said it has recorded 35 cases of cyclosporiasis, two of which have resulted in hospitalizations.
Cyclosporiasis is caused by a microscopic parasite found in fresh produce. The illness’ main symptom is watery, explosive diarrhea that can last between a week and a month.
The county’s case count continues to climb even though the suspected cause of the outbreak, bagged lettuce from grower Taylor Farms, has been recalled from stores and Taco Bell restaurants, Mrenak said.
The current total of 159 cases is an increase from 117 reported July 24.
“We were hopeful that cases would start to slow down with the recall but we’re not sure if we have even hit the peak yet,” Mrenak said.
Several possible reasons why cases continue to rise
Mrenak said case totals could still be rising for several reasons:
- People who purchased infected lettuce might still be eating it.
- Cyclosporiasis’ incubation period can be as long as two weeks before symptoms begin. The recall was issued July 17.
- There are reports of a second, unrelated cyclosporiasis outbreak that doesn’t involve Taylor Farms.
“There isn’t much information about that second outbreak, except that it is smaller,” Mrenak said. “It’s not known what food is involved.”
Reduce your risk by buying local, cooking vegetables
People can reduce their risk of cyclosporiasis by following a few simple precautions, Mrenak said. One is to avoid bagged lettuce for now.
Another is to wash produce thoroughly, though this parasite is difficult to remove. Cooking vegetables to at least 158 degrees kills the parasite.
“You can purchase your produce from local growers, just be sure to ask if the products they are selling were grown locally,” Mrenak said. “Local produce isn’t affected.”
Health department nurses and staff have interviewed about 80 of the people affected and are in the process of interviewing 55 others, Mrenak said. Two-thirds of those interviewed said they had eaten at a Taco Bell within two weeks of getting sick.
Most people are recovering on their own or with the standard treatment, which is a seven- to 10-day course of the antibiotic Bactrim, also known as Septra.
Patients are still advised to contact their health-care provider if they have diarrhea for three days or longer. The most common complication is dehydration, though complications are rare in otherwise healthy people.
