Camp and cheeseburgers shouldn't kill - mother and son describe effects of E. coli O157 illness linked to Rhode Island camp; 'I want it to be Ponderosa night again'
Stephen Smith of the Boston Globe writes this morning,
The signs of trouble arrived deep in the night: first, bloody diarrhea, then nausea
Austin Richmond nor his mother knew it at the time, but he had been infected with a potentially lethal germ known as E. coli O157:H7. And, according to a lawsuit filed yesterday, the 11-year-old from Lincoln, R.I., caught it doing what many children do when they are away at camp, by eating a cheeseburger.
There were trips to the emergency room, trips to the doctor’s office, and initial confusion over what was causing him to be so sick. For more than two weeks, Austin, a sixth-grader, has been banished from school and not just because of his own illness. There is also concern that, because his immune system has been so ravaged battling the E. coli infection, he might prove especially susceptible to swine flu, which killed another student at Lincoln Middle School over the weekend.
Austin’s mother, Jaimee Richmond, said,
“He just wants to go back to being him. He wants to be able to play soccer. He wants to go to Boy Scouts. He wants to go back to church, which are words I never thought I would hear coming out of his mouth. … “I’m angry, I’m sad, I’m confused, I’m overwhelmed. I just want to go back to normal life. Tuesday night, it used to be Ponderosa night because it’s cheap, it’s family, the kids loved it. I just want it to be Ponderosa night again.’’
UK child with E. coli infection dies
The BBC has just reported that a child from Devon has died after being infected with E. coli.
The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has refused to release any details about the child, thought to be a toddler.
But the agency would say that no clear source for the infection has been found and that no other cases have been linked to the infection.
The HPA has also confirmed that it does not think the child's death is connected to an outbreak which centred on a petting farm in Surrey.
Sick kids from petting zoo climbs to 79; parent vows never to visit farm again
Gemma Weaver, 24, of Bramley Close, has vowed to "never forgive the farm" after her three-year-old son, Alfie (right), suffered kidney failure following a visit to Godstone Farm.
“We are taking legal advice at the moment. I will never, ever be setting foot in a farm with my children again. Not just Godstone Farm but any farm."
Mrs Weaver said she still hadn't heard from (farm manager) Mr Oatway, who added,
“We will definitely be opening again. There are still ongoing investigations but we are sure we will open again."
Three more cases of E.coli linked to a children's petting farm have been confirmed - taking the number of people affected to 79.
UK child's face smeared with fox poop after playing in sandbox at garden center
I have some great memories of my kids growing up, playing in the sandbox, covered in runny snot and saying, Dad, is this cat poop?
Cats view sandboxes as giant litterboxes.
Foxes too.
This Is Gloucestershire reports,
Two-year-old Jasmine Westgate was playing in the sandpit at Highfield Garden World in Whitminster when she put her hands in a pile of fox mess.
Jasmine's father Bruce said,
"It was absolutely vile. Jasmine didn't know what she was doing and ended up with fox mess all over her face. She ingested some of it too which could have had harmful consequences. There are potentially life-ruining diseases linked with coming into contact with animal faeces. The sandpit shouldn't have been left in such a state. It obviously hadn't been cleaned properly by staff.”
Staff at Highfield Garden World, which offers a range of activities for children, said the sandpit was now out of use until further notice.
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Managing director Joan Greenway said,
"We would like to apologise to the Westgates for what happened.”
Gettin' shiggy wit it: Increase of shigella-linked illnesses in St. Louis
STLtoday reports tonight that there appears to be an Shigella outbreak going on linked to child care centers in St. Louis. Shigellosis is characterized by fever, cramps and may result in bloody diarrhea, but most recover within a week without treatment.
There have been 67 cases of shigellosis from July 1 through Monday, compared to nine cases for all of 2008, according to the St. Louis City Department of Health.
Health officials said four day care centers and one school clustered in south St. Louis city reported illnesses. Officials did not offer other specifics except to say that children ages 4 and younger are most commonly infected.
City health officials sent the shigellosis alert to day cares and schools, where the shigella bacteria is typically spread when people don’t wash their hands properly after using the bathroom or changing diapers. It can also be spread through contact with food. Shigella bacteria can remain in feces for several weeks.
E. coli backlash as UK health type apologies for delay in closing farm
With 13 kids in hospital and 37 sick after visiting a UK farm, Health Protection Agency chief executive Justin McCracken has phoned parents of the children most seriously affected to apologise to them.
"If this information had been taken into account on 27 August, then the advice given and the steps taken on 3 September would have been introduced earlier and the farm might have been closed earlier.
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"I wanted to speak personally to the parents of those children who are most seriously ill in hospital to explain what has happened and, however inadequate under the circumstances, to apologise.
"The position they find themselves in is unbearable and it is of course worse that what has happened might have been avoidable."
The farm was closed on Saturday - although the first E.coli case was reported on 27 August.
A pair of two-year-old twins, from Paddock Wood in Kent, have suffered acute kidney failure.
Initially, the HPA said the first case came to light on 27 August.
It later emerged that the agency had received a report of two cases in the previous week.
Tennessee health officials investigating E. coli case; two children infected
WJHL
reports a Tri-Cities boy could receive a blood transfusion today as he recovers from an E. coli infection. Meanwhile, the Northeast Tennessee Health Office is now investigating the case and trying to identify the source of the potentially deadly bacteria.
A week ago, doctors at the Johnson City Medical Center discovered four year-old Gage Peterson had E. coli. Richard Peterson expects his son to receive a blood transfusion at some point Thursday as he remains in the hospital.
According to a Johnson City Medical Center spokesperson, three weeks prior to Peterson’s admission, another child came into the hospital with E. coli. That child is now in the pediatric ICU.
UK family farm closes after 8 get E. coli O157
Another reminder to play safe on the farm.
An open farm in West Lancashire has been temporarily closed after eight people, including three children, were struck down with E.coli O157.
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One of the children affected is currently in hospital and is described as ‘poorly but stable’.
The eight people are from two families that both recently visited Windmill Animal Farm, on Red Cat Lane, in Burscough.
The farm is being considered as one possible source of the infection and the farmer is co-operating fully with the investigations.
Child stricken with HUS in France; link to frozen ground beef patties
Our French correspondent Albert forwarded a press release issued yesterday by the French Ministry of Health and Sports; Amy translated.
Following notification on February 11, 2009 to InVS (The French Institute for Public Health Surveillance) of a case of hemolytic uremic syndrome in a child who is hospitalized in the Parisian region, health authorities have begun an investigation to identify the source of contamination.
The tests done on the child indicated he or she was infected with E. coli.
Among the foods consumed was frozen ground beef patties on which tests were conducted. The results of these tests were relayed today to health authorities and demonstrated the presence of E. coli. The link between this case and the consumed food will only be confirmed after further testing which is currently in progress.
While waiting for those results, the authorities have asked the producer to proceed with a recall of CERGEL brand frozen ground beef patties sold in boxes of 10 with a best-by date of 10/31/09.
The health authorities are asking people who have bought these patties to not eat them and to return them to where they were purchased.
The Ministry also has some general advice, which seems a bit lacking, but maybe it got lost in translation.
Generally you are reminded that:
- Ground meat ordered at the butcher shop must be consumed that day and frozen ground meat must be used without any prior defrosting;
- Cooking the ground beef patties through to the center prevents the consequences of E. coli contamination. The bacteria is destroyed by a temperature of 65°C (149°F). Children and pregnant women should not consume rare meat.
- Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS) is an illness most frequently originating in food, rare in France, and potentially serious for the very young and very old. It can cause acute renal insufficiency in children under the age of 3.
