Three things to know about multi-state salmonella outbreak, egg recall
FDA
(NEW YORK) — A poultry farm in Wisconsin has recalled all of its eggs distributed in three states that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has linked to dozens of sicknesses as part of a Salmonella outbreak across nine states.
Details of multi-state salmonella outbreak, egg recall
Milo’s Poultry Farms LLC issued a recall on all carton sizes of all chicken egg types and expiration dates sold under two different labels, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced with the company on Sept. 6.
Milo’s Poultry Farms’ eggs were distributed in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Michigan through retail stores and food service distributors.
The Bonduel-based producer issued the recall on “Milo’s Poultry Farms” and “Tony’s Fresh Market” branded eggs, “because these eggs have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems,” the company said in a statement.
“The recall was initiated after the FDA informed the company that environmental samples tested positive for the bacteria. FDA also conducted whole genome sequencing and found that the samples were related to an ongoing Salmonella outbreak investigation,” the company stated.
Milo’s Poultry Farms has ceased production and distribution as of the time of publication and “will undergo appropriate testing and sanitization of farms and processing equipment.”
The CDC has reported 65 total illnesses and 24 hospitalizations as of time of publication and the active investigation is ongoing.
Symptoms, side effects of salmonella
“Most people infected with Salmonella experience diarrhea, fever, and stomach cramps. Symptoms usually start 6 hours to 6 days after swallowing the bacteria. Most people recover without treatment after 4 to 7 days,” according to the CDC.
“Some people—especially children younger than 5 years, adults 65 years and older, and people with weakened immune systems—may experience more severe illnesses that require medical treatment or hospitalization,” the agency notes.
(NEW YORK) — Health officials are warning Americans about a rare insect-borne virus that has infected several travelers.
As of Aug. 16, there have been 21 cases of Oropouche virus disease, sometimes called “sloth fever,” detected among U.S. travelers returning from Cuba, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The CDC said it wants clinicians and public health offices to be aware of the virus and to test for suspected cases, and for travelers to protect themselves from insect bites.
Here’s what you need to know about the virus:
What is ‘sloth fever’?
Oropouche virus is an arthropod-borne virus, meaning a type of virus spread to people by the bite of infected arthropods, a group of insects.
The virus is mainly spread to humans by infected culicoides prariensis, a species of biting midges, although it can be transmitted by certain mosquito species, according to the CDC.
It is sometimes called “sloth fever” because scientists investigating the virus first found it in a three-toed sloth and the virus naturally live in sloths, non-human primates and birds.
“I think that really stems from the role of sloths as hosts in that natural transmission cycle,” Dr. Chantal Vogels, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Yale School of Public Health, told ABC News. “But there’s other animals involved as well.”
Oropouche virus is endemic to the Amazon basin — including Bolivia, Colombia and Peru — and was first discovered in a human in 1955 in a febrile forest worker in a village in Trinidad and Tobago.
“The concern is that now it is spreading to Cuba and possibly elsewhere in the Caribbean, with imported cases in the U.S.,” Dr. Peter Hotez, co-director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, told ABC News. “There is a possibility that it could gain a foothold in the southern U.S. especially in Gulf Coast states.”
What are the symptoms?
The incubation period of Oropouche virus disease is three to 10 days and matches symptoms of similar diseases including dengue, Zika and chikungunya.
Common symptoms include fever, headache, chills, muscle aches and joint pain, typically lasting about two to seven days and then disappearing.
Patients may experience other symptoms including nausea, vomiting, rash, sensitivity to light, dizziness and pain behind the eyes.
“This virus is an interesting one in that about a week later, 50% or more of people will have a recurrence of the symptoms,” Dr. Michael Angarone, an infectious diseases specialist at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago, told ABC News. “So, the symptoms will recur and, again, be present for around five days to seven days and then go away. So, I think that’s a very interesting aspect of this virus.”
How is it treated?
To be diagnosed with Oropouche virus disease, a health care provider will have to order laboratory tests.
There are no vaccines to prevent or medicines to treat Oropouche virus disease. Treatment mainly involves treating the symptoms including getting rest, preventing dehydration, and taking over-the-counter pain medicine, such as acetaminophen, according to the CDC.
The CDC advises against taking aspirin or other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs until dengue can be ruled out to lower the risk of bleeding.
How do I prevent the virus?
The best prevention method is to prevent bites from midges or mosquitoes. The CDC recommends using insect repellent, having tight-fitting screens on windows and doors, wearing long-sleeve shirts and pants and using a fan when outdoors.
Currently there is no evidence of local transmission in the U.S; the only cases have been travel-related.
“Here in the U.S., I think travelers should be alert,” Vogels said. “If they travel to areas where there is ongoing transmission, they should be aware of potential symptoms upon return.”
There have also been recent reports of possible vertical transmission, which is when a pregnant person passes the infection to their baby in utero. The infection may result in adverse pregnancy outcomes, including fetal deaths and congenital malformations.
“This has been demonstrated in South America, but also in, I think, a few of the cases that are being looked at now from Cuba,” Angarone said. “There have been descriptions of fetal demise, so [miscarriage] or premature labor and congenital abnormalities, they have not been confirmed to be caused by the virus or the infection, and that’s what’s being looked into.”
The experts recommend that travelers — especially those who are older or immunocompromised — exercise further precautions when traveling to prevent infection.
Those who are pregnant and are considering travel to countries with an Oropouche virus Level 2 Travel Health Notice, reconsider nonessential travel, the CDC says.
(NEW YORK) — Millions of American seniors are having a hard time affording their prescription medications, a new National Health Statistics report suggests.
The study, published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, found that approximately 4% of those aged 65 and older can’t afford their prescription at all, and more than 3% of them skipped doses, delayed filling a prescription or took less medication than prescribed to cut back on costs.
“Older adults that were food insecure were six times more likely to not get their prescription medication,” Robin A. Cohen, study co-author and statistician with the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics, said.
Dr. Lalita Abhyankar, a family medicine physician based in San Francisco, told ABC News she often sees patients struggling to pay for their medications.
One of Abhyankar’s patients with diabetes couldn’t afford his monthly dose of insulin, so “he would ration out his insulin,” she said. Despite being on both Medicaid and Medicare, “the copay was challenging for him to do on a month-to-month basis,” she noted.
Abhyankar has also seen this problem when patients needed an expensive medication because cheaper alternatives haven’t worked.
“I’ve seen them do half a dose or take it once a day instead of the recommended twice or three times a day and then continue to walk around with uncontrolled high blood pressure,” Abhyankar said. “That increases their risk of stroke, heart attack, damage to the eyes and kidneys.”
She went on, “The downstream effects are going to be that we’re going to see more patients in hospitals, and emergency rooms. That puts a huge burden on the healthcare system.”
Generally, adults aged 65 and older qualify for universal health care under Medicare. That covers medical needs such as doctors’ visits and hospital stays.
Medications aren’t automatically included. Older adults must enroll in Medicare Part D, a separate prescription drug coverage plan, or a private insurance plan that helps pay for medications.
Even when they are covered, most Americans will still owe some amount for copays and premiums. When the expenses pile up, some choose to forego any coverage at all.
Abhyankar said there are ways to reduce the cost of prescriptions including websites such as GoodRx that can offer coupons for customers sometimes at lower prices. Another option is the online discount pharmacy Cost Plus Drugs, which has hundreds of medications available for purchase at lower prices.
Abhyankar also suggested that patients try insurance preferred pharmacy programs, which are pharmacies that have an agreement with an insurance plan to charge less to fill prescriptions.
Last month, the Biden administration announced an agreement with drug companies to lower the price of 10 prescription medications for people with Medicare Part D. The negotiated prices will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2026.
Roshan Nebhrajani Bransden, MD, is a family medicine resident physician and a member of the ABC News Medical Unit.
(LOS ANGELES) — While Los Angeles County is reporting three locally acquired cases of dengue this year — which is rare for the region — there have been at least 3,085 cases nationally of locally acquired virus so far this year, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
There has been about double the number of locally acquired dengue cases so far this year nationally compared to last year, according to the CDC. Puerto Rico currently makes up the bulk of those cases – with over 2,960 reported. The U.S. territory declared a public health emergency back in March.
“The City of Baldwin Park is aware of the recent cases of locally acquired dengue in our community. While the risk of transmission remains low, we must take this situation seriously and act proactively,” said Mayor Emmanuel J. Estrada.
Dengue viruses spread through mosquito bites. The most common symptom is a fever with aches and pains, nausea, vomiting and rash. Symptoms usually begin within two weeks after being bitten by an infected mosquito and last 2-7 days. Most people recover after about a week.
Locally acquired cases mean that the people infected have no history of traveling to an area where dengue normally spreads. Local dengue transmission is typically common in tropical and subtropical areas of the world – including Florida, and U.S. territories in the Caribbean.
Last year, there were only two locally acquired cases reported in the state of California, the first local cases in the state reported in over a decade, according to CDC data.
The CDC issued a health alert in June warning health care providers of an increased risk of dengue virus infection this year. Globally, new cases of dengue have been the highest on record, according to the CDC. The agency also noted that cases are likely to increase as global temperatures increase.
The best way to prevent dengue is to avoid mosquito bites, according to the CDC.
