Sunday, June 5, 2011

EHEC outbreak: Update 8

05-06-2011

In Germany the outbreak of enterohaemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) continues.


Haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS)


As of 05 June at 10:00 CET, Germany had reported 627 cases of HUS (including 15 fatalities): 54 more than the previous day.


Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC)


As of 05 June at 10:00 CET, 1536 cases of EHEC infection (without HUS) had been reprted in Germany (with 6 fatalities): 108 more than the previous day.


Other countries


As of 05 June at 18:00 CET, 11 other European countries had reported a total of 31 HUS (with 1 fatality) and 71 EHEC cases (with 0 fatalities):




















































Country
HUS
EHEC
Austria0
2
Czech Republic0
1
Denmark7
11
France0
10
Netherlands4
4
Norway0
1
Poland1
0
Spain1
0
Sweden15
31
Switzerland0
3
United Kingdom3
8


In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, United States of America, had earlier published information on 2 cases of HUS in the United States linked to this outbreak.

All except 1 of the above HUS and EHEC patients had travelled to or from Germany during the incubation period for infection, typically 3–4 days after exposure (range 2–10 days). An increasing number of cases is laboratory confirmed as EHEC serotype O104:H4 or, more precisely, a strain of enteroaggregative verocytotoxin-producing E. coli (EAggEC VTEC) O104:H4. All of the affected countries are reporting their cases to the German authorities and WHO. European Union countries are also sharing information through the secure Early Warning and Response System (EWRS).


Note


EHEC and HUS have exclusive notification categories, so case numbers should not overlap. The figures in any rapidly evolving outbreak, however, are provisional and subject to change for a variety of reasons.

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