The outbreak of listeriosis has spread to other parts of the Eastern Cape.
Two cases were registered this week in Amathole District municipality, mayor Winnie Nxawe confirmed yesterday.
This follows a case of a four-month-old girl from Libode last month, while earlier this month Nelson Mandela Bay municipality confirmed two cases of the food-borne disease.
ADM spokesman Siyabullela Makhunga said their senior health officials had confirmed that a pensioner from Alice in the Raymond Mhlaba municipality had been confirmed to have tested positive for the bacteria.
The second case involved a 22-year-old youth from Mnquma.
The investigation was conducted after the Department of Health raised the flag when it released statistics on January 17, stating that there are 29 confirmed laboratory cases in the Eastern Cape, and that nine of those cases were from ADM, Makhunga said.
Senior officials from ADM’s health services unit were dispatched to investigate the cases on Tuesday.
“A septuagenarian was confirmed to have tested positive for the bacteria, while in Mnquma the bacteria was found in a 22-year-old pupil from Zazulwana village in Butterworth,” said Makhunga. No further details about their specific villages or towns or gender were available by the time of going to print.
Listeriosis is a serious infection caused by the rod-shaped bacteria listeria monocytogenes. It is spread when people eat food contaminated with the bacterium.
The most common foods to be contaminated are raw or unpasteurised milk, as well as soft cheeses, deli meats, or vegetables to mention but a few.
Its symptoms develop any time between two and 30 days after eating food contaminated with the listeria pathogen. They include mild‚ flu-like symptoms‚ headaches‚ muscle ache‚ fever‚ nausea and vomiting.
If the infection spreads to the nervous system it can cause a stiff neck‚ disorientation or convulsions.
Latest statistics of confirmed cases in what has been described as the biggest listeriosis outbreak, is now 767‚ up from 748 on January 12, according to the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) .
The Times reported that out of 235 cases for which the NICD had “outcome data”, the death rate was 34% (80).
Hardest hit by the outbreak is Gauteng province (59%) followed by the Western Cape (13%) and KwaZulu-Natal (7%) provinces.
Makhunga said an ongoing public awareness campaign was being run by stakeholders. It focused on dairy farms, food handlers and included visits to boarding schools and health facilities.
“A sampling plan has been developed for the district. The outbreak response team led by the district department of health has been revived to monitor and coordinate the outbreak response activities,” said Makhunga.
Nxawe commended the district officials including those from the community services department and its environmental health practitioners for following up on the two confirmed cases.
“ urge all to continue adhering to basic hygiene and food safety guidelines… encourage that should anyone experience symptoms associated with the disease, especially pregnant women, babies below the age of 28 days, senior citizens above the age of 65 and immuno-compromised patients, be taken to their nearest clinics,” he said.
In a statement, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases Outbreak Response Unit chairman Dr Kerrigan McCarthy said: “We plead with everyone to follow strict food safety and management systems to help curb further outbreaks and to fully contain any other micro-organisms associated with the bacteria.”
The five key food safety practices are:
lKeep clean by washing your hands before handling food and often during food preparation;
lSeparate raw and cooked food and separate raw meat, poultry and seafood from other foods;
lCook thoroughly, especially meat, poultry, eggs and seafood;
lKeep food at safe temperatures by refrigerating when necessary and reheating correctly;
lUse safe water by boiling it.
For further details call: NICD emergency operations centre: 011-386-2000 (office hours), NICD Hotline for clinical emergencies: 0828839920; and the Outbreak Response Unit: Dr K McCarthy: 011-555-0542.
New listeria cases in ADM
Two cases were registered this week in Amathole District municipality, mayor Winnie Nxawe confirmed yesterday.
This follows a case of a four-month-old girl from Libode last month, while earlier this month Nelson Mandela Bay municipality confirmed two cases of the food-borne disease.
ADM spokesman Siyabullela Makhunga said their senior health officials had confirmed that a pensioner from Alice in the Raymond Mhlaba municipality had been confirmed to have tested positive for the bacteria.
The second case involved a 22-year-old youth from Mnquma.
The investigation was conducted after the Department of Health raised the flag when it released statistics on January 17, stating that there are 29 confirmed laboratory cases in the Eastern Cape, and that nine of those cases were from ADM, Makhunga said.
Senior officials from ADM’s health services unit were dispatched to investigate the cases on Tuesday.
“A septuagenarian was confirmed to have tested positive for the bacteria, while in Mnquma the bacteria was found in a 22-year-old pupil from Zazulwana village in Butterworth,” said Makhunga. No further details about their specific villages or towns or gender were available by the time of going to print.
Listeriosis is a serious infection caused by the rod-shaped bacteria listeria monocytogenes. It is spread when people eat food contaminated with the bacterium.
The most common foods to be contaminated are raw or unpasteurised milk, as well as soft cheeses, deli meats, or vegetables to mention but a few.
Its symptoms develop any time between two and 30 days after eating food contaminated with the listeria pathogen. They include mild‚ flu-like symptoms‚ headaches‚ muscle ache‚ fever‚ nausea and vomiting.
If the infection spreads to the nervous system it can cause a stiff neck‚ disorientation or convulsions.
Latest statistics of confirmed cases in what has been described as the biggest listeriosis outbreak, is now 767‚ up from 748 on January 12, according to the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) .
The Times reported that out of 235 cases for which the NICD had “outcome data”, the death rate was 34% (80).
Hardest hit by the outbreak is Gauteng province (59%) followed by the Western Cape (13%) and KwaZulu-Natal (7%) provinces.
Makhunga said an ongoing public awareness campaign was being run by stakeholders. It focused on dairy farms, food handlers and included visits to boarding schools and health facilities.
“A sampling plan has been developed for the district. The outbreak response team led by the district department of health has been revived to monitor and coordinate the outbreak response activities,” said Makhunga.
Nxawe commended the district officials including those from the community services department and its environmental health practitioners for following up on the two confirmed cases.
“ urge all to continue adhering to basic hygiene and food safety guidelines… encourage that should anyone experience symptoms associated with the disease, especially pregnant women, babies below the age of 28 days, senior citizens above the age of 65 and immuno-compromised patients, be taken to their nearest clinics,” he said.
In a statement, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases Outbreak Response Unit chairman Dr Kerrigan McCarthy said: “We plead with everyone to follow strict food safety and management systems to help curb further outbreaks and to fully contain any other micro-organisms associated with the bacteria.”
The five key food safety practices are:
lKeep clean by washing your hands before handling food and often during food preparation;
lSeparate raw and cooked food and separate raw meat, poultry and seafood from other foods;
lCook thoroughly, especially meat, poultry, eggs and seafood;
lKeep food at safe temperatures by refrigerating when necessary and reheating correctly;
lUse safe water by boiling it.
For further details call: NICD emergency operations centre: 011-386-2000 (office hours), NICD Hotline for clinical emergencies: 0828839920; and the Outbreak Response Unit: Dr K McCarthy: 011-555-0542.
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