German authorities say bean sprouts definitely behind E.coli outbreak

[Treyfish]

Jun 5, 11:37 AM EDT


By KIRSTEN GRIESHABER and TOMISLAV SKARO
Associated Press




AP Photo/Focke Strangmann

http://analytics.apnewsregistry.com/analytics/v2/image.svc/AP/RWS/hosted.ap.org/MAI/V4592-2011-06-05T1137Z/E/prod/AT/A[/IMG] HAMBURG, Germany (AP) -- Health authorities say locally grown beansprouts in northern Germany have been identified as the likely cause of an outbreak of E. coli that has killed at least 22 people and sickened hundreds in Europe.
Lower Saxony agriculture ministry spokesman Gert Hahne told The Associated Press his state is sending an alert warning people to stop eating the sprouts, which are often used in mixed salads.
Hahne said official test results have not yet conclusively shown that the Lower Saxony-grown sprouts are to blame but "all indications speak to them being" the cause.

:tiphat:http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/storie...ME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2011-06-05-11-28-00

 

[Treyfish]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Officials: Bean sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Hospitals in northern Germany struggle to provide enough beds and medical care for striken patients :tiphat:http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43285439/ns/world_news-europe/

 

[Treyfish]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

killer germ EHEC - shoots suspected
Source appears to be a factory in Lower Saxony Sprouts from a production facility in the district of Uelzen (Lower Saxony) are, according to Lower Saxony's agriculture minister Gert Lindemann (CDU) is a recognizable source of EHEC epidemic. When an employee therefore an EHEC infection was detected, another staff member was also suffering from diarrhea.

However, the minister said: ". We can not recognize that the farmer with a fault in the development of" some sprout mixtures of the operation thus imports from abroad.

The conclusions drawn from 19 different types of seed sprouts have been supplied to restaurants and bars as well as health food shops and weekly markets. According to initial findings, but they were not included in other retail outlets.

In the press conference as Minister of the product among others, the suspected "Sprossfit mild blend ', and it contains sprouts from alfalfa, fenugreek, mung beans, lentils, adzuki beans.

The sprouts were supplied directly or through intermediaries of restaurants in Hamburg, Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Hesse and Lower Saxony - the spreading area of ​​the intestinal disease!

The operation of the district Uelzen is closed since Sunday, the product was recalled.

Nor the EHEC pathogens in sprouts is not established, however, in the laboratory. So far, the study results are based solely on the trade routes.

Nevertheless, it was certain that a "very strong track down the source of infection" had. "The sequence of events shows very, very strongly that the rungs of a very, very likely to be a clear source of the pathogen," said Lindemann.

The first six major outbreaks of EHEC pathogen can be, according to the Lower Saxony State Office for Consumer Protection (LAVES) supplies the manufacturer shoot back.

According to the Office three canteens in Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia and three catering establishments in Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein, intermediaries from the nursery in Bienenbüttel district Uelzen were supplied.

The Ministry recommends to refrain currently on the consumption of sprouts. It can not be excluded that the contaminated with EHEC pathogens goods had already been fully processed and sold.

The manager of the establishment concerned, Klaus Verbeck said the "New Osnabruecker Zeitung" that he could make no sense to the allegations against its products. The salad bars would grow only from seed and water and were not fertilized at all. In other divisions of the court will not use animal manure, not even horn meal, Verbeck said the newspaper.

Both samples were investigated in the past two weeks on your own behalf, as well as studies of the food control had been no EHEC strain result of its products. According to Lindemann, the shoots are produced in the operation in 38 degree hot water vapor. "Optimal conditions for the growth of EHEC pathogen," said Lindemann. The pathogen could have been imported already with the seed from which the shoots were produced.

According to Lindemann at the start, shaft and shoots were investigated as a possible cause already.

"But then there was a restriction on three types of vegetables," he said, referring to the warning of cucumbers, tomatoes and lettuce. In a total of 500 samples of vegetables so far no EHEC pathogens through the Lower Saxony State Office has been established. Lindemann did not lift yet on Sunday, the consumption warning tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce.

Meanwhile, 21 deaths to be associated with EHEC. Nationwide, more than 1,500 cases of EHEC and 620 HUS cases have been reported.

Sprouts were already in Japan 1996 fall associated with EHEC disease is suspected. A final confirmation of the suspected but had not revealed Michael Kuehne said of LAVES. A wave of disease by shoots in Europe is not the LAVES known, he said.
http://www.bild.de/news/inland/ehec/sind-sie-ursache-fuer-seuche-18233362.bild.html

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

German to English translation (Google)

5.06.2011.EHEC: The trail leads to an organic farm in the district of Uelzen, Hannover (LME) - Lower Saxony's Minister of Agriculture Lindemann announced at a press conference that the authorities of Lower Saxony may have achieved a breakthrough in the search for the source of the deadly EHEC infections is. Numerous epidemiological links point to a seed company in Bienenb?ttel in the district Uelzen. The operation is a "vegan farming community" operated since 1978 and practiced organic farming. The operation covers from various countries around the world and produces seeds derived stem vegetables.

Also, two employees of the breeder's offspring are suffering from diarrhea, according to Lindemann's - one of them proved to EHEC.

Intent of the investigators is primarily the "Mild shoot mixture" of the horticulturists. All of the company were precaution, but pulled from the market. The plant is closed since Sunday. "The situation is so clear indications that are recommended, in my view, the consumer must present to refrain from the consumption of sprouts," said Lindemann.

Lower Saxony's Minister of Agriculture Lindemann called at the press conference including the following shoots, seeds and sprout products: Adzukibohnenkeime, alfalfa sprouts, broccoli sprouts, crunchy mix, pea seeds, chickpea seeds, garlic sprouts, lentil sprouts, "Mild Mix" (from different sprouts: fenugreek, Mungo beans, lentils, adzuki beans, alfalfa), mung bean sprouts, radish sprouts, radish sprouts, red cabbage, sprouts, sunflower seeds, wheat germ, "spicy mixture and onion sprouts.


http://www.animal-health-online.de/...u-einem-bio-betrieb-in-den-kreis-uelzen/6266/

 

[kiwibird]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

The manager of the establishment concerned, Klaus Verbeck said the "New Osnabruecker Zeitung" that he could make no sense to the allegations against its products. The salad bars would grow only from seed and water and were not fertilized at all. In other divisions of the court will not use animal manure, not even horn meal, Verbeck said the newspaper

. If the pathogen was on the raw seed then the source of the seed needs to be traced. Other producers could well end up producing contaminated sprouts.

 

[Treyfish]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

E. COLI O104 - EUROPEAN UNION (11): CASE UPDATE, POSSIBLE SPROUTSOURCE***********************************************************************A ProMED-mail post<http://www.promedmail.org>ProMED-mail is a program of theInternational Society for Infectious Diseases<http://www.isid.org>Date: Sun 5 Jun 2011Source: Associated Press [edited]<http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110605/ap_on_he_me/eu_contaminated_vegetables_europe>Initial tests have confirmed that bean sprouts grown in northernGermany are the likely cause of an _E. coli_ [O104:H4] outbreak thathas killed at least 22 people and sickened over 2200, an agricultureofficial said Sun 5 Jun 2011.Different kinds of sprouts from one organic farm in the greaterUelzen area, between the northern cities of Hamburg and Hanover, couldbe traced to infected persons in 5 different German states, LowerSaxony Agriculture Minister Gert Lindemann told reporters. "There weremore and more indications in the last few hours that put the focus onthis farm," Lindemann said at a press conference in Hanover."Many restaurants that suffered from an _E. coli_ outbreak had thosesprouts delivered," his spokesman, Gert Hahne, told The AssociatedPress. The farm was shut down Sunday [5 Jun 2011], and all of itsproduce, including fresh herbs, fruits, flowers and potatoes, wasrecalled. At least one of the farm's employees was also infected withthe _E. coli_ bacteria, the minister said.Lindemann said 18 different sprout mixtures were under suspicion,including sprouts of beans, broccoli, peas, chickpeas, garlic lentils,mungo beans and radish. The sprouts are often used in mixed salads.Lindemann urged Germans to not eat sprouts until further notice andsaid definitive test results would be available Monday [6 Jun 2011].He said authorities could not yet rule out other possible sources forthe outbreak and urged Germans to continue avoiding tomatoes,cucumbers and lettuce until further notice.Sprouts have been implicated in previous _E. coli_ outbreaks,particularly one in Japan in 1996 where tainted radish sprouts werefound to have killed 12 people and reportedly sickened more than 12000 others.The current crisis is the deadliest _E. coli_ outbreak in modernhistory.The head of Germany's national disease control center raised thedeath toll to 22 people on Sunday [5 Jun 2011], 21 in Germany and onein Sweden, and said another 2153 people in Germany have been sickened.That figure included 627 people who have developed a rare, seriouscomplication of the disease that can cause kidney failure. Ten otherEuropean nations and the USA have reported a total of 90 othervictims.[Byline: Kirsten Grieshaber and Tomislav Skaro]--Communicated byroMED-mail<promed@promedmail.org>[As the overall number of cases continues to accumulate, it is nowreported that German-grown sprouts may well be the major vehicle. Itis not clearly stated whether the outbreak organism has been isolatedfrom sprouts, but it is reported that a worker from the farm acquiredthe infection. If this farm is the primary source of the organism, thenext step is to find out from where the presumed manure fertilizersource was obtained. The organism itself is distinctly unusual, andefforts should be made to try to assess how Mother Nature put the bugtogether. - Mod.LL]:tiphat:http://www.promedmail.org/pls/otn/f..._BACK_PAGE,F2400_P1001_PUB_MAIL_ID:1000,88765

 

[kiwibird]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

If this farm is the primary source of the organism, thenext step is to find out from where the presumed manure fertilizersource was obtained.

The farm owner said they were grown hydroponically though. The contamination must have come from the water/the original seed or someone who handled the produce. I thought that the workers affected had only recently developed symptoms.

 

[tetano]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

EHEC epidemic: Health Minister Bahr expressed cautious about sprouts findings

Berlin - Federal Health Minister Daniel Bahr (FDP) has expressed caution about evidence of sprout vegetables from Lower Saxony as the cause of the current rampant EHEC disease. although there is clear evidence that a farm in Uelzen could be a source of infection, Bahr said on Sunday evening in the television program "Anne Will '. There was still no security. First, laboratory results should be awaited. Until then, no clear signal could be given. The Minister of Health advised that, therefore, in addition to raw tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuces currently also choose not to shoot vegetables. The President of the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), Andreas Hensel, said on ZDF also that you can not even be sure that the scion of vegetables is causing the disease. In Germany, according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) 21 deaths with an EHEC infection RELATED. The EHEC bacteria can also cause hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). The symptoms of the illness include watery or bloody diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In a very serious disease threatening kidney failure.


http://www.news-de.com/politik/ehec...sert-sich-zuruckhaltend-uber-sprossen-befund/

 

[tetano]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Microbiologist: why sprouts are so dangerous


Hamburg.
Was it sprouts, which provided for the EHEC epidemic? According to one
Microbiologists are a possible intestinal germ carriers very plausible.
'Sprouts were from the beginning of the usual suspects, which one
would have been able to arrest from the start, "said Alexander Kekul? of
the University of Halle-Wittenberg on Monday in the ARD "Morning Magazine". You
had a typical vegetable that is on many different meals throughout
Germany and is distributed over time and over again Infections
can trigger.

'We know that this is a particularly dangerous product, "said
Kekul?. Sprouts are one of the few exceptions where a few
Bacteria in the bud during growth are to remain in the fruit and
could not be washed off from the outside. If the
Suspicions, the microbiologist provides a good opportunity to
Success in the fight against EHEC: 'We are now in a situation where the
(...), really true that we know the source and then very very quickly
stem the epidemic. "


http://www.abendblatt.de/ratgeber/g...ologe-Darum-sind-Sprossen-so-gefaehrlich.html

 

[Emily]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

'Sprouts were from the beginning of the usual suspects, which one
would have been able to arrest from the start, "said Alexander Kekul? of
the University of Halle-Wittenberg on Monday in the ARD "Morning Magazine"

I have not seen sprouts mentioned as a suspected vegetable in any of the new reports in English that I have read until just recently.

http://scienceblogs.com/aetiology/2011/06/e_coli_update.php?utm_source=sbhomepage&utm_medium=link&utm_content=channellink

E. coli update: sprouts as the culprit?

Category: General Epidemiology ? Infectious disease ? Outbreak ? Public health ? Various bacteria
Posted on: June 5, 2011 4:15 PM, by Tara C. Smith

The E. coli story is moving quickly. A news report out today suggests that sprouts might be the culprit (though it should be emphasized that the outbreak strain hasn't been isolated from these vegetables yet)...

Tara C. Smith is an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology. Her research involves a number of pathogens at the animal-human nexus.

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Update from Monstersandcritics:

Jan Kielstein, a kidney specialist treating victims at the University of Muenster Hospital in northern Germany, said patients had not mentioned eating the sprouts.
'I spoke to two patients this morning, and neither could remember eating them,' he said. 'The word sprouts never came up interviews here.'

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In Hamburg an old pack of sprouts was found in the refrigerator of a - now healed - EHEC-patient. The package is from the suspected company in Bienenbüttel. So we may soon expect clarity.

Alte Packung mit Sprossen-Mischung aus Bienenbüttel gefunden

Hamburg (dpa) – In Hamburg ist eine mehrere Wochen alte Packung mit Sprossengemüse aufgetaucht, das für die Infektionswelle mit dem gefährlichen EHEC-Erreger verantwortlich sein könnte. Die Mischung «Milde Sprossen» stammt aus dem Bio-Betrieb in Bienenbüttel, den die Behörden als Infektionsherd im Visier haben. Ein 42-Jähriger hatte die Packung in seinem Kühlschrank vergessen. Er war selbst an EHEC erkrankt, ist aber inzwischen wieder gesund. Mit der alten Packung könnte es gelingen, die Infektionsquelle zweifelsfrei nachzuweisen.

Focus

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak?

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak?

June 6, 2011

First EHEC-testresults at suspect sproutfarm are negative

The first batch of 23 from a total of 40 samples from the sproutfarm are tested negative. Samples were taken - among others - from water, tables, airco .

Labortest bringt noch keinen Beweis für Sprossen-Verdacht

Die Quelle für den gefährlichen Ehec-Keim ist noch immer nicht gefunden: Die ersten 23 Proben aus dem verdächtigen Betrieb im Kreis Uelzen sind frei von Ehec, das gab das niedersächsische Verbraucherministerium bekannt. Die Verbraucher müssen wohl noch länger auf Gewissheit warten.

Hannover - Insgesamt hatten die Fahnder auf dem Betrieb demnach 40 Proben entnommen: Unter anderem aus dem Wasser, von Arbeitstischen und aus der Lüftungsanlage. Der kleine Hof in Bienenbüttel war schon zuvor ins Visier der Ermittler geraten, damals wurde jedoch der Ehec-Keim mit Labortests nicht bestätigt.

Spiegel

 

[Emily]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak?

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak?

Even if a strain match is ever found on one old package of sprouts in a patient's fridge, (post #11),it would not prove anything if the package were opened. The patient could have acquired the strain elsewhere and accidentally contaminated the sprouts.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/e-coli-outbreak-source-still-unknown-reports-2011-06-06?link=MW_latest_news
market pulse

June 6, 2011, 3:54 p.m. EDT
E. coli outbreak source still unknown: reports

 

[Treyfish]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak?

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak?

Germany says no proof organic sprouts caused E. coli outbreak; expert calls probe a 'disaster'
HAMBURG, Germany (AP) First they pointed a finger at Spanish cucumbers. Then they cast suspicion on sprouts from Germany. Now German officials appear dumbfounded as to the source of the deadliest E. coli outbreak in modern history, and one U.S. expert called the investigation a "disaster."
Backtracking for the second time in a week, officials Monday said preliminary tests have found no evidence that vegetable sprouts from an organic farm in northern Germany were to blame.
The surprise U-turn came only a day after the same state agency, Lower Saxony's agriculture ministry, held a news conference to announce that the sprouts appeared to be the culprit in the outbreak that has killed 22 people and sickened more than 2,330 others across Europe, most of them in Germany, over the past month.
Andreas Hensel, head of Germany's Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, warned, "We have to be clear on this: Maybe we won't be able anymore to identify the source."
Last week, German officials pointed to tainted cucumbers from Spain as a possible cause, igniting vegetable bans and heated protests from Spanish farmers, who suffered heavy financial losses. Researchers later concluded the Spanish cucumbers were contaminated with a different strain of E. coli.:tiphat:http://www2.wsls.com/news/2011/jun/06/ap-news-in-brief-ar-492508/

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak

Update from Monstersandcritics:

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In Hamburg an old pack of sprouts was found in the refrigerator of a - now healed - EHEC-patient. The package is from the suspected company in Bienenbüttel. So we may soon expect clarity.

No EHEC-bacteria found in the old pack of sprouts in Hamburg.

Untersuchung in Hamburg

Sprossenprobe ist EHEC-frei

Die von einem Hamburger EHEC-Patienten bei den Behörden abgegebene Sprossen-Probe weist keine EHEC-Keime auf. Das sagte Hamburgs Gesundheitssenatorin Cornelia Prüfer-Storcks. Der 42-jährige Hamburger hatte das Sprossengemüse des betroffenen gesperrten Hofs in Niedersachsen im Kühlschrank vergessen.

Die mehrere Wochen alte Packung mit dem Verfallsdatum von Ende April hätte den Behörden dabei helfen können, die Infektionsquelle zweifelsfrei nachzuweisen. Schließlich stammt sie aus der Zeit, als sich die Infektion ausgebreitet hatte. Auch neue Laborproben von Sprossengemüse von dem betroffenen Hof in Bienenbüttel sind bislang ebenfalls negativ ausgefallen.

Tagesschau

 

[Tonka]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak? No Evidence

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak? No Evidence

SourceroMed
http://www.promedmail.org/pls/otn/f..._BACK_PAGE,F2400_P1001_PUB_MAIL_ID:1000,88778

Archive Number 20110606.1731
Published Date 06-JUN-2011
Subject PRO/AH> E. coli O104 - EU (12): sprout cultures negative so far
E. COLI O104 - EUROPEAN UNION (12): SPROUT CULTURES NEGATIVE SO FAR
*******************************************************************
A ProMED-mail post
<http://www.promedmail.org>
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
<http://www.isid.org>

Date: Mon 6 Jun 2011
Source: BBC News Europe [edited]
<http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13672161>


The 1st tests from a north German farm suspected of being the source
of an _E. coli_ [O104:H4] outbreak are negative, officials say. Of 40
samples from the farm being examined, they said 23 tested negative
[and the others? Mod.LM].

Officials had said earlier that bean sprouts produced at the farm in
Uelzen, south of Hamburg, were the most likely cause of the outbreak.
The outbreak, which began 3 weeks ago and is concentrated in Hamburg,
has left 22 people dead. Initially, German officials had pointed to
Spanish cucumbers as the probable cause of the illness.

The farm in Uelzen is about 100 km (62 mi) south of Hamburg and
supplies restaurants and markets in the city and neighboring German
states.

--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
<promed@promedmail.org>

[Negative tests at this point certainly do not exclude previous
shipments of sprouts as the vehicle for this large outbreak. It is
possible that most if not all of contaminated vehicle may have been
eaten or passed the time when it would be eaten and newer lots might
not have been exposed to the contamination source.

It may be the case that science may not produce a "smoking" sprout
here (where the outbreak strain is isolated from the suspected
vehicle) and we would be left with epidemiological data alone. More
tests are being performed and cultures of sprouts already in
restaurants may also be useful.

In this moderator's mind, negative tests at this point do not
eliminate a source. - Mod.LL]

[see also:
E. coli O104 - EU (11): case update, poss. sprout source
20110605.1720
E. coli O104 - EU (10): USA commentary 20110605.1718
E. coli O104 - EU (09) & USA 20110603.1701
E. coli O104 - EU (08) & USA: genetic analysis, more cases
20110603.1692
E. coli O104 - EU (07) & USA 20110601.1678
E. coli O104 - EU (06) & USA 20110531.1666
E. coli O104 - EU (05): (Germany) monoclonal antibody trial
20110529.1646
E. coli O104 - EU (04): (Germany) more deaths & HUS cases
20110528.1635
E. coli O104 - EU (03): (Germany, EU ex Germany) alert 20110527.1629
E. coli O104 - EU (02): (Germany, EU ex Germany), alert
20110527.1620
E. coli O104 - EU: (Germany, Denmark, Sweden) Spanish cucumbers
20110526.1611
E. coli VTEC - Germany (04): O104, poss. salad source 20110526.1600
E. coli VTEC - Germany (03): O104, spread South 20110525.1587
E. coli VTEC - Germany (02): increased case burden 20110524.1578
E. coli VTEC - Germany: RFI 20110523.1566
E. coli VTEC non-O157 - Japan: O111, raw beef, alert 20110504.1378
2010
----
E. coli VTEC non-O157 - USA (07): O26, ground beef, alert, recall
20100831.3097
E. coli VTEC non-O157 - USA (06): O145, lettuce 20100528.1777
E. coli VTEC non-O157 - USA (03): O145, lettuce, recall
20100507.1483
E. coli VTEC non-O157 - USA (02): (OH, MI, NY) O145 20100505.1460
E. coli VTEC non-O157 - USA: (MI, OH) 20100427.1358
2008
----
E. coli VTEC non-O157, restaurant - USA (04): (OK), O111
20081201.3779
E. coli VTEC non-O157, restaurant - USA: (OK), O111 20080902.2748
E. coli VTEC non-O157, past. ice cream, 2007 - Belgium: Antwerp
20080218.0655
2007
----
E. coli VTEC non-O157, beef sausage - Denmark 20070602.1784
E. coli VTEC non-O157, 2000-2005 - USA (CT) 20070118.0240
2006
----
E. coli VTEC non-O157, lettuce - USA (UT)(02): background
20060905.2523
E. coli VTEC non-O157, lettuce - USA (UT) 20060904.2521
E. coli VTEC non-O157 - Norway (03) 20060416.1133
E. coli VTEC non-O157 - Norway 20060329.0947
E. coli VTEC non-O157, minced beef - Norway 20060304.0680
2005
----
E. coli O145, fatal - Slovenia 20050916.2739
2003
----
E. coli, VTEC non-O157 - UK (Scotland): correction 20030828.2166
E. coli, VTEC non-O157 - UK (Scotland) 20030825.2144
2001
----
E. coli O26 - South Korea 20010509.0896
1999
----
E. coli O111, diarrhea - USA (Texas) 19990707.1134
1997
----
E. coli, non-0157 - Belgium 19970610.1215]
.................................................ll/mj/lm
*##########################################################*
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are posted, but the accuracy and completeness of the
information, and of any statements or opinions based
thereon, are not guaranteed. The reader assumes all risks in
using information posted or archived by ProMED-mail. ISID
and its associated service providers shall not be held
responsible for errors or omissions or held liable for any
damages incurred as a result of use or reliance upon posted
or archived material.
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[tetano]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak? No Evidence

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak? No Evidence

EHEC references to garden sprouts condense in Lower Saxony,


Hanover - The information provided in the locked Sprouts in Bienenb?ttel condense as a possible source for the EHEC epidemic. The Minister of Agriculture of Lower Saxony said Gert Lindemann. Accordingly, a third worker fell ill in May of G?rtnerhof probably due to EHEC. It has now returned to work. So far only the EHEC disease in a co-worker was known, a second also suffered from diarrhea. Nationwide there are now nearly 3,000 people, where EHEC is suspected or has been demonstrated.

http://www.ivz-online.de/aktuelles/...ssenhof_in_Niedersachsen_verdichten_sich.html

 

[tetano]

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak? No Evidence

Re: Germany: Sprouts likely cause of E. coli outbreak? No Evidence

German authorities have yet to find the cause of the E. coli outbreak but there are growing indications that the bean sprout farm in Bienenb?ttel identified on Sunday may indeed be a source.

Health officials have found two fresh clues that point to the farm near the town of Uelzen in northern Germany, the regional consumer protection ministry of Lower Saxony said on Wednesday.

Ministry spokesman Gert Hahne said a total of 18 people infected with EHEC, the deadly strain of the bacterium, around the northern port of Cuxhaven ate sprouts from the farm in a company canteen.

In addition, three female workers at the farm suffered from diarrhea in the first half of May, and one of them is known to have been contaminated with EHEC. Their work included packaging the sprouts.

The ministry spokesman said it was possible that one of the women accidentally "fed the pathogen into the operations of the company." Or they might have been infected with EHEC at the farm.

Reuters reported that a local doctor said a worker at the farm had been taken severely ill with E. coli and had part of her intestine removed. The 54-year-old woman developed bloody diarrhea followed by serious blood disorders.

Anton Schafmayer, a doctor who operated on her, said she had eaten the sprouts. "It went very fast. Such a pace is very rare," he told Reuters. "The surgery probably saved her. We removed a large part of the lower intestine."

The Lower Saxony ministry spokesman said that despite the additional clues pointing to the sprout farm, it was still possible that the nationwide epidemic stemmed from several sources.

Four canteens and three restaurants where people caught EHEC are now known to have been supplied by the Bienenb?ttel farm -- infecting about 100 of the more than 2,600 EHEC patients in Germany. So far, no EHEC bacteria have been found at the farm.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,767434,00.html

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

German authorities say bean sprouts definitely behind E.coli outbreak

German authorities say bean sprouts definitely behind E.coli outbreak

Reutersflash

 

[Treyfish]

Re: German authorities say bean sprouts definitely behind E.coli outbreak

10 June 2011 Last updated at 05:14 ET
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German tests link bean sprouts to deadly E. coli


New data released in Germany strongly suggest that locally produced bean sprouts were, as suspected, the source of the deadly E. coli outbreak.
"It's the bean sprouts," said Reinhard Burger, head of Germany's centre for disease control.
"People who ate sprouts were nine times more likely to have bloody diarrhoea than those who did not," he added.
He warned that the outbreak, which has killed 29 people and sickened some 3,000, was not over.
It also generated a crisis for EU vegetable-growers, with Spanish cucumber producers wrongly blamed for the contamination.
Mr Burger, who heads the Robert Koch Institute, told reporters on Friday that even though no tests of the sprouts from a farm in Lower Saxony had come back positive, the epidemiological investigation of the pattern of the outbreak had produced enough evidence to draw the conclusion.
The institute, he added, was lifting its warning against eating cucumbers, tomatoes and lettuce, but keeping it in place for the sprouts. :tiphat:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13725953