1. An International Outbreak of Salmonella Infections Caused by Alfalfa Sprouts Grown from Contaminated Seeds.
- Author
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Mahon, Barbara E., Pönkä, Antti, Hall, William N., Komatsu, Kenneth, Dietrich, Stephen E., Siitonen, Anja, Cage, Gary, Hayes, Peggy S., Lambert-Fair, Mary Ann, Bean, Nancy H., Griffin, Patricia M., and Slutsker, Laurence
- Abstract
An outbreak of Salmonella serotype stanley infections occurred in the United States and Finland in 1995. The outbreak was investigated through case-control studies in Arizona, Michigan, and Finland; by isolate subtyping; and by tracing and culturing of the implicated food. Alfalfa sprout consumption was the only exposure associated with S. stanley infections in Arizona (matched odds ratio [MOR] = 11.1; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.4–513), Michigan (MOR = 5.5; CI, 1.6–23), and Finland (MOR undefined; CI, 4.9-∞). US and Finnish patient isolates were a unique outbreak strain distinct from S. stanley isolates not linked to the outbreak. Alfalfa sprouts eaten by patients in 6 US states and Finland were traced to seed shipped by a Dutch shipper. Thus, it was concluded that alfalfa sprouts grown from contaminated seed caused an international outbreak of ⩾242 S. stanley infections in ⩾17 US states and Finland. This outbreak illustrates a new mechanism through which contamination of fresh produce can cause large, widely dispersed outbreaks. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]
- Published
- 1997