Successive occurrence of EHEC O157 infection from eating raw beef liver, May-June 2000 - Wakayama City
(IASR 2000; 21: 164-165)

During May to June 2000 enterohemorragic Escherichia coli O157:H7 cases have been continuously reported in Wakayama City and surrounding towns. Five incidences were reported in May, and the number of patients and asymptomatic carriers reached 14. In all these cases the patients had episodes of going to barbecue restaurants, and in 4 incidences they had episodes of eating raw beef liver.

E. coli O157:H7 verocytotoxin(VT) 1(+) and VT 2(+) was isolated from the 2 incidences. The patients went to different restaurants. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) did not match and the drug susceptibility patterns were different.

The other 3 incidences yielded E. coli O157:H7 VT 2(+) from the patients and asymptomatic carriers. They had a history of going to the same barbecue restaurant chain (2 facilities). The microorganism was not isolated from environmental samples, beef (different lot), and stool collected by the employees. However, the fact that these 2 facilities were provided with beef through the same shipping route and evidences that the PFGE patterns and the drug susceptibility patterns were both matched concluded that these cases were probably infected at these facilities.

In June another E. coli O157:H7 VT1 (+) and VT2 (+) was isolated from a patient who had eaten raw beef liver. PFGE pattern is being analyzed.

These incidences strongly suggest that raw beef liver should be avoided for prevention of E. coli O157 infection.

Reported by: Yoshiharu Morino, Koji Yamashita, Yuko Kanazawa, Michi Ueno, Hiromoto Ohta, Michiyo Kitaguchi, Keiko Iwasaki, Etsuko Tsujisawa, and Kazue Tabita, Wakayama City Institute of Public Health

Correspondence:
E-mail: eiseiken@city.wakayama.wakayama.jp

Return to the TopPage

Back to Home