Acting Health Commissioner Fern P. Clarke today is alerting the public of a travel advisory to Germany in light of a rare strain of E.coli identified as Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O104, or STEC O104. As of June 3, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which is monitoring the outbreak, said that German officials had reported nine deaths and 470 patients with hemolytic uremic syndrome, or HUS (kidney failure), a life-threatening complication of E. coli infections, according to a press release from the V.I. Department of Health.
Individuals with recent travel to Germany with signs or symptoms of STEC infection or HUS, should seek medical care. Symptoms of STEC infection include severe stomach cramps, diarrhea, which is often bloody, and vomiting. HUS symptoms include decreased frequency of urination, feeling very tired, and losing pink color to skin and membranes due to anemia.
“We recognize that some of our residents have family in Germany through the U.S. military and want to urge caution if they visit the area or if their loved ones visit the Virgin Islands,” Clarke said.
The U.S. Department of Defense has been notified of this outbreak because of the presence of U.S. military bases in Germany and has said it is not aware of any cases among U.S. military personnel, according to the CDC.
According to the CDC, STEC infections can be spread from person to person. The best defense is careful, thorough hand washing. Persons returning from Germany who have diarrhea should be sure to wash hands well with soap and warm water after using the bathroom, and should not prepare food for others while they are ill. People who are in contact with ill people who recently visited Germany should also follow basic hygiene practices carefully, including washing their hands thoroughly before eating or drinking and after caring for an ill person.
To date, there are no confirmed cases of STEC O104 infections reported in U.S. travelers to Europe. However, two cases of HUS in the United States have been reported in persons with recent travel to Hamburg, Germany. CDC is working with state health departments to learn more about these two cases and to identify others and alerted state health departments in the United States, including the Virgin Islands, of the ongoing outbreak.
German public health authorities have recommended against eating raw lettuce, tomatoes or cucumbers, particularly in the northern states of Germany — Hamburg, Bremen, Lower Saxony, Schleswig Holstein.
The CDC said it has no information on whether any of these suspected foods have been shipped from Europe to the United States or whether a specific food has been confirmed as the source of the infections.
For more information visit www.cdc.gov
