There are promising signs that illnesses linked to contaminated lettuce may be slowing in Michigan, the hotspot of the multistate outbreak of cyclosporiasis in the U.S.That doesn’t mean all the affected produce is gone from stores or restaurants, or that more people aren’t still getting sick, experts say.
On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported more than 18,000 confirmed or suspected nationwide cases of cyclosporiasis, the illness caused by a parasite found in human feces.In nine states, most of the illnesses have been traced to shredded iceberg lettuce sourced from Taylor Farms de Mexico.
Other states, such as New York and North Carolina, have also seen higher than normal clusters, from unknown sources.The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services said Tuesday that more than 9,500 people have gotten sick from the parasite in the state, with about 160 hospitalizations, in the last two months.The Food and Drug Administration didn’t immediately respond to questions regarding the agency’s progress in tracing the source or sources of the illness.It’s been over a week since Taylor Farms voluntarily recalled iceberg lettuce from some Taco Bell restaurants, groceries and food service suppliers.
While the outbreak isn’t over in Michigan, cases may have peaked there.Dr.
Natasha Bagdasarian, chief medical executive for Michigan, said a significant number of recently reported cases, roughly 475 since July 24, were a result of a reporting delay at one particular healthcare system and don’t necessarily reflect new illnesses.Bagdasarian said another positive indicator they are seeing is that the percentage of visits to emergency departments with diarrhea as a main complaint is slowing.
However, people with milder symptoms may not be getting tested.“I do have a big caveat,” said Bagdasarian.
“We have heard recently from some of our health systems that because of backlogs in their labs, and because of limitations wit...