Increased Number of Shigella Cases Occurring in US

CDC is reporting that there has been an increase in the number of Shigella infection cases in the US.  Of the 243 cases,  45 cases were reported in Massachusetts. California had 25 cases and there were 18 cases in Pennsylvania.   The strain is resistant to the antibiotic Ciprofloxacin, a second generation antibiotic, which does cause the medical community a little concern.

Shigella causes diarrhea, sometimes bloody, that can last for 5 to 7 days.  It is highly infectious and is spread from a person who is sick to another person via the fecal oral route.  So hand washing is important.  It is considered a foodborne pathogen, so food that has been handled by someone with Shigella can serve as a vector.

 

Keys to prevention - Exclusion of people who have the symptoms or who have been diagnosed, and proper hand washing.

 

 

US News and World Report

http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2015/04/02/drug-resistant-stomach-bug-spreading-across-the-us

Drug-Resistant Stomach Bug Spreading Across the U.S.

By Kimberly Leonard April 2, 2015 | 5:26 p.m. EDT

Travelers are infecting Americans when they return home.

A recent, rapid spread of a diarrhea-causing bug that is immune to medicine has caused government health officials to issue a warning to travelers about their hygiene.