Personal Injury Law

Secondary cases are a clear public health threat

By Bill Marler, Esq.

I just landed from a 10-hour flight from Istanbul to New York and I have a few moments to update my blog.   On the plane I read the interesting CDC study from Scotland on the prevalence of 'Secondary Cases' (person-to-person transmission from a primary E. coli O157:H7 infection).  The study found that secondary cases constituted 246/2,026 (12%) of the symptomatic cases (11% of all cases) on average in a given outbreak.

Over the last two decades, we have seen dozens of confirmed secondary cases and many that were likely.  Here are a few E. coli Outbreaks that included secondary cases:

• AgVenture Farms Petting Zoo E. coli O157:H7 Outbreak Litigation - Florida
• CCC Alternative Learning Daycare E. coli Outbreak - Texas
• ConAgra Ground Beef E. coli Outbreak - Nationwide
• Cuyahoga County E. coli and HUS outbreak - Ohio
• Dee Creek Farm E. coli Outbreak - Washington & Oregon
• Dole Spinach E. coli Outbreak - Nationwide
• Finley Elementary School E. coli Outbreak - Washington
• Forest Ranch Fire Department Fundraiser E. coli Outbreak - California
• Jack in the Box E. coli Outbreak - Western States
• Karl Ehmer Meats E. coli Outbreak – New Jersey
• Kid's Korner Daycare E. coli Outbreak - Missouri
• Kindercare E. coli Outbreak - California
• Lane County Fair E. coli Outbreak - Oregon
• National Steak and Poultry E. coli O157:H7 outbreak - nationwide
• Nebraska Beef E. coli Litigation - Minnesota
• Nestle Toll House Cookie Dough E. coli Outbreak - Nationwide
• Odwalla E. coli Outbreak - Western States
• Peninsula Village E. coli Outbreak - Tennessee
• PM Beef Holdings, Lunds & Byerly's E. coli Outbreak - Minnesota
• Wendy's E. coli Outbreak - Utah
• White Water Water Park E. coli Outbreak - Georgia

And, we have not talked about Salmonella cases yet.

Full post as published by Marler Blog on March 07, 2011 (boomark / email).