Shigella Lawyer & Attorney : Marler Clark : Shigella Blog

Parents of children who attend Roberts Elementary School in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, received letters this week regarding a Shigella outbreak at the school.  At least 14 people have become ill with shigellosis since the outbreak began, and parents were warned of the symptoms of Shigella infection and were asked to keep kids home from school and daycare if they exhibit symptoms of the illness. 

According to the Fond du Lac Reporter, all cases reported so far involve children, their household contacts, or daycare and school staff. 

Symptoms of Shigellosis:

Most people who are infected with Shigella develop diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps. Severity of the disease ranges from mild to very severe diarrhea. Diarrhea is bloody 25-50% of the time and most often contains mucus. Rectal spasms, medically termed "tenesmus," are common. The illness starts 12 hours to 6 days, usually 1-2 days, after exposure. Dehydration is also a common symptom of Shigella infection.

Shigellosis is more severe than other forms of gastroenteritis. This is because when Shigella bacteria multiply in the human gut they invade cells and result in much tissue destruction. Also, many strains produce a toxin called "shiga toxin" which is very potent and destructive. Shiga toxin is very similar to the verotoxin of E. coli O157:H7.

Complications of shigellosis include severe dehydration, seizures in small children, rectal bleeding, and invasion of the blood stream by the bacterium.  In addition, up to 3% of persons who are infected with Shigella may later develop a syndrome that includes joint pain and swelling, irritation of the eyes, and sometimes painful urination. This is a reaction to the previous gastroenteritis and is called “reactive arthritis” or Reiter's Syndrome.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

WSAV reported on a Shigella outbreak in Effingham, Georgia, on Friday:

A number of Effingham County students are suffering from a bacterial infection in their digestive systems.

Health officials in the Coastal District say it is common to find shigellosis infections this time of year, but they are seeing a larger number of cases in the last couple of weeks.

Health officials are encouraging people to use proper handwashing techniques to prevent the spread of illness.  Shigellosis, the illness caused by ingestion of the Shigella bacterium, causes nausea, abdominal cramping, and diarrhea.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

The Chiefland Citizen reported on September 27, 2006 that:

A Sept. 14 letter distributed to parents of Chiefland Elementary School children warns of a disease known as Shigella, which can go undetected for seven days and the carriers of the disease may not show symptoms.

Those symptoms are: watery, bloody or loose stool, fever, and headache or cramps.

Shigella is spread from person-to-person, or by eating or drinking contaminated food or beverage, or by touching a contaminated object, according to the letter by Elizabeth Powers, R.N., with the Levy County Health Department.

Levy County Health Department Administrator of Health Barbara Locke, R.N., M.P.H., said Shigella is a fecal-oral bacterial infection of the intestines.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

The Louisiana Advertiser's Jason Brown reported on a Shigella outbreak at St. Pius Elementary:

There have been three known cases of shigellosis, a type of stomach bacteria that usually causes diarrhea and stomach cramps, and one case of Salmonella at St. Pius Elementary, a school official said today.

Ted Daigle, assistant principal at St. Pius, said an official with the Department of Health and Hospitals came to the school Thursday and confirmed that the bacteria was Shigella and not E.Coli. Daigle said kids have been complaining of stomach issues for two weeks . . .

Daigle said the school has stepped up sanitizing in restrooms, from two times a day to several times a day. He said that includes toilets, sink handles, door handles, paper towel and dispenser handles. They also notified parents and brought in health officials for more tips on prevention.

Daigle said the diner and custodial staff have also stepped up their efforts.

They have also changed school policy so that any child who displays some of the symptoms, diarrhea or nausea, must not return to school until 24 hours after the symptoms have ceased, Daigle said.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

07.sep.06 The China Post Associated Press

Beijing -- Medical experts say a food poisoning outbreak that left at least 300 Chinese schoolchildren hospitalized was caused by shigella bacteria, a news report said Wednesday. Students and teachers fell ill after eating lunch Friday at the Chongzhou City Experimental Primary School in the southwestern province of Sichuan. Investigators have found shigella bacteria in the food, the official Xinhua News Agency said. The bacteria are spread through undercooked or contaminated food and poor hygiene, and cause diarrhea, fever, vomiting and stomach cramps. Earlier reports said at least 300 children were hospitalized. Xinhua said Wednesday that 57 were confirmed to be suffering from food poisoning and 516 were under observation, though it didn't say how many of those were in hospitals. It said several teachers had recovered and were discharged. It isn't clear whether the food was contaminated by its supplier or during preparation at the school, Xinhua said, citing Fu Xiaolu, director of the Disease Prevention and Control Center in the provincial capital of Chengdu. Some other mass poisoning cases at Chinese schools have been blamed on cooks who mistook toxic chemicals for salt or other ingredients or on intentional attacks.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

BEIJING, Sept. 7 -- Experts have discovered the bacterium that caused a food poisoning outbreak at a school in Southwest China's Sichuan Province that affected hundreds of children and teachers.

The bacterium has been identified as shigella sonnei, which causes dysentery, said Liu Jun, deputy chief of Chengdu Municipal Health Bureau, at a press conference yesterday.

The announcement of the cause of the outbreak, which occurred at Chongzhou City Experimental Primary School, 40 kilometres from Chengdu, follows complaints from parents that the local government was slow at giving out information.

Lab experiments showed that shigella sonnei was found in a sample of cold pork dressing that was served to pupils at the school last Friday, Liu said.
A total of 1,134 pupils and 140 faculty members had lunch in the school canteen on what was the first day of the new school year.

The next afternoon, some students and teachers showed symptoms of fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, stomach ache and diarrhoea.

Several days after the event 606 students and teachers had been treated in various hospitals, Liu said.
But both the press and relatives of victims suspect that more people have come down with food poisoning resulting from shigella sonnei. Soon after learning about the food poisoning incident last Sunday, five reporters from Xinhua News Agency went to Chongzhou to cover the story.

The local government told them that only 45 pupils had been hospitalized because of food poisoning. But relatives of some pupils told them that the actual number might be between 700 and 800.

To verify the figure, they went to several local hospitals and found more than 300 pupils were being treated.

But when they asked relevant government departments and hospitals to verify the figure over the next two days, the latter either insisted there were only 45 victims or avoided answering the question.

Because of the government's slow response, rumours spread in Chongzhou, many of which were unfounded, such as some pupils were dying. In fact, no deaths have been reported. The local government could have checked the spread of rumours if it had released timely information, but it kept silent, Xinhua said.

In January, the central government brought out regulations on the handling of such incidents.
It says timely and accurate information must be released to the public and no misinformation should be given.

Classes at the affected school have been suspended and will be resumed after more than two-thirds of the sick pupils recover, said Chen Gang, vice-mayor of Chongzhou.

Chen said that the cost of treating the sick pupils would be paid for by the local government.
(Source: China Daily)

• Email This
• Print
• Comments (1)
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

April 27, 2006
The Brunswick News (Ga.)
Lauren McCallister

The Glynn County school system is warning parents of pre-kindergarten children at the Family and Children's Education Services center to be on the lookout for symptoms of shigellosis, an infectious disease that's treatable with antibiotics.

Students carried letters home with them Wednesday from the school advising parents that there have been reported cases of shigellosis at FACES.

Health officials said there have been at least two confirmed cases.

Shigellosis is an infectious disease caused by the bacterium Shigella. It is caused by contaminated food, water or improper hand washing.

FACES Principal Sue Williamson said the center has had 200 absences since March, but noted that it's not uncommon for her students to miss school this time of year. She added that many of the absences were unrelated to shigellosis.

"You have to remember that we're dealing with little children and this time of year they can be out for a variety of reasons," she said.

Some 320 students ages 3 to 5 attend FACES at the program's building at First and Norwich streets, Brunswick.

Annette Neu, infectious disease coordinator of the Coastal Health District, has been working with FACES staff members to determine the cause of the cases of diarrhea, a symptom commonly associated with shigellosis.

"In day-cares with young children, this sort of thing really isn't uncommon," Neu said. "The most important thing to do is emphasize good handwashing."

Neu said although the original source of the outbreak is unknown, she said one child might have picked up the Shigella bacterium somewhere, possibly outside of the school, and spread it among other students due to ineffective handwashing.

Williamson emphasized that good handwashing is taught continuously throughout the year, but it's impossible to monitor children all the time.

"The nurse comes around at the beginning of the school year and teaches them how to do it and it's really reinforced throughout the year," she said.

Neu added that although only two of the FACES diarrhea cases have been confirmed as shigellosis, clinical testing is ongoing.

"Two cases certainly don't make an outbreak, but it does warrant an investigation," she said.

Representatives of the Brunswick hospital of Southeast Georgia Health System believe the diarrhea problems being experienced at FACES are contained.

"We haven't seen any more cases than usual for this time of year," said Michelle Morris, director of Ambulatory Practice Management.

• Email This
• Print
• Share Link