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Health advisory: Salmonella Wandsworth associated with Veggie Booty
June 28, 2007 |
ACTION REQUESTED:
- Be alert for symptoms of salmonellosis: fever, abdominal pain, diarrhea that may be bloody
- For patients with even mild symptoms compatible with salmonellosis, particularly infants and toddlers:
- ask about a history of eating Veggie Booty within 2 weeks prior to symptom onset
- obtain a stool culture
- Report suspected cases to Public Health at 296-4774
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Background: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is investigating a multi-state outbreak of Salmonella Wandsworth, with symptom onset between March 1, 2007 and June 11, 2007. There have been 52 cases identified in 17 states. Eighty-eight percent of cases have occurred in children between the ages of 10 months and 3 years. Most cases (~70%) have had bloody diarrhea. Four patients were hospitalized and there have been no deaths. Preliminary results of an ongoing case control study implicate Veggie Booty, a snack food produced by Robert's American Gourmet. As of June 28th, four cases have been identified in Washington State residents, including one case in King County. All four cases are in children under 5 years old, and all have recovered. More cases across the nation will probably be uncovered as the outbreak is investigated. S. Wandsworth is an unusual serotype of Salmonella, with only 65 cases reported nationwide between 1995 and 2005.
Most persons infected with Salmonella develop diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps 12 to 36 hours (range 6 to 72 hours) after infection. The illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days, and most persons recover without treatment. In some persons the diarrhea may be so severe that the patient needs to be hospitalized. The elderly, infants, and those with impaired immune systems are more likely to have a severe illness. Antibiotic therapy is generally not indicated because it does not shorten symptoms and may prolong the duration of fecal excretion. However, antibiotic treatment is recommended for infants up to 3 months, the elderly, those with hemoglobinopathies (especially sickle cell disease), chronic gastrointestinal disease, immune deficiency or suppression, or HIV infection. Patients with continued/high fever or manifestations of extraintestinal infection should also receive antibiotic therapy.
The US Food and Drug Administration recommends that people not eat Veggie Booty until further notice. The manufacturer has recalled the product and is offering reimbursement for empty bags. CDC has requested that households of possible cases that consumed Veggie Booty within 2 weeks prior to symptom onset safely store any opened bags with remaining Veggie Booty for possible testing. Contents of unopened bags should be discarded.
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