The CDC reports: Shigellosis is a nationally notifiable diarrheal illness caused by gram-negative bacteria. Shigella infection is spread through fecal-oral transmission and sexual contact. Although most infections are self-limited, antibiotics are indicated for severe illness or to reduce transmission in settings with high risk for spread. Since 2015, a growing proportion of cases has been caused by […]
Laboratory testing, PFGE, and epidemiologic investigations Health care providers may in some instances order testing of an ill person’s blood or stool to help determine the cause of illness. In many circumstances a positive result in such a test must be reported to the health authorities pursuant to statute or regulation. Many states require reporting […]
A few weeks ago I turned 50 and in a few months I will have been a lawyer for 20 years. For those who know me to be "on" 24/7, and always a cell phone or a email away, it should come as no surprise that I actually love my work. By all measures my […]
CNN reporter Stephanie Smith and I talked last week, or I talked and she listened about last years E. coli O157:H7 outbreak tied to lettuce at Taco John’s restaurants in Minnesota and Iowa. A fe other interesting facts: • E. coli on lettuce at Taco John’s restaurants sickened at least 81 people last year • […]
Both cases focused on a petting zoo at the Strawberry Festival. Dong-Phuong Nguyen of the Times and I spoke yesterday about the settlement and the future of petting zoos – I would urge everyone to see www.fair-safety.com: A 7-year-old Tampa girl and a 53-year-old St. Petersburg woman who were sickened from an E. coli outbreak […]
Health care provider treatment and diagnosis Medical records are also an important part of making a food-poisoning case. Both stool cultures, and less commonly blood cultures, can identify the particular pathogen causing a claimant’s illness. As previously discussed, each foodborne pathogen carries with it an expected incubation period – the amount of time expected to […]
Health agency inspections and documentation One extraordinarily effective tool in establishing the defectiveness of a product that no longer exists is uncovering documentation of the food service establishment’s track record from previous health inspections. This may include information regarding prior incidents or accusations of food contamination and prior inspections of the facility and the establishment’s […]
Two victims of the 2005 E. coli outbreak traced to a petting zoo at the Florida Strawberry Festival resolved claims brought against the festival last week. Both victims, a woman and a young child, suffered hemolytic uremic syndrome (www.about-hus.com) and required extensive medical treatment, including dialysis, after contracting E. coli O157:H7 at the 2005 Florida […]
What you eat can make your sick – May 19th and 20th at 8:00 PM EST America’s dirty little secret. Do you know what you’re really eating? Dr. Sanjay Gupta uncovers the truth.
It is great to see the New York Times focusing attention on food safety – especially E. coli O157:H7 – and quite pleased to see that our clients, the Armstrongs, were interviewed: Elizabeth Armstrong did not give the Food and Drug Administration much thought until her children became ill from eating contaminated bagged spinach. Her […]
Health agency investigation Although statutes and regulations vary from state to state, there are a number of bacterial and viral illnesses associated with food consumption that are monitored by health departments, including E. coli O157:H7, Campylobacter, Salmonella, Shigella, Listeria, Norovirus, and hepatitis A. For most of these pathogens, a positive lab result from a human […]
CNN Special Unit Investigation: Saturday, May 19, & Sunday, May 20: 8 p.m. & 11 p.m. EST I was interviewed for this story – it will be interesting to see how much of the interview is used.
It would figure that the CDC claims this to be Hepatitis Awareness Month — May 2007 Health officials are warning people not to eat raw shellfish after 13 Arizonans, one of them a Yuma County resident, contracted hepatitis A from eating uncooked oysters at Rocky Point, Son., in March. “These cases are a reminder that […]
The Legal Process: Tools used in evaluating claims of foodborne illness It is predictable that some people are inclined to issue claims of dubious legitimacy, or that are simply fraudulent. In our work as litigators, we see no shortage of bogus claims. There are claims that food looked or “smelled funny,” claims of finding foreign […]
I get asked quite often what I do and how I do it. Below is the beginning of a ten part series that I have been working on – I hope you find it helpful. Part 1 Introduction Each year, about 76 million cases of foodborne illness occur in the United States, according to U.S. […]
Brynn Galindo of KGET Reported – Health Department identifies E. coli source Bakersfield’s recent E. coli began at a backyard waterslide, the health department has announced. Health Director Dr. B.A. Jinadu emphasized there is no continuing danger to anyone who has not yet become sick. “After a thorough investigation the Department of Public Health has […]