A man is dead after contracting a bacterial infection from eating raw oysters at a local restaurant in Galveston, Texas, public health officials have confirmed.
The unnamed man, believed to be between 30 and 40 years old, became ill after consuming raw oysters at a restaurant on August 29, according to local health authority Dr. Philip Keiser. He was admitted to the hospital on September 1, and died three days later.
Officials attributed his death to Vibrio vulnificus, a bacteria prevalent in warm, coastal waters that can infect individuals when they consume raw or undercooked shellfish, particularly oysters. In addition, infection can occur through contact with an open wound.
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Keizer noted that the person already had liver disease and was undergoing treatment with immunosuppressive drugs.
On September 1, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a Health Advisory through the Public Health Alert Network (HAN) to alert the public, laboratories, and public health departments about recent cases of fatal infections, including from wounds and food. infections.
“Vibrio vulnificus, its name is actually loaded with meaning because vulnificus means like a volcano and it refers to the fact that these infections, when they take hold, can spread extremely quickly like a wildfire,” Keizer said in an interview with KTRK.
Symptoms of Vibrio vulnificus can include diarrhea, stomach cramps, nausea, vomiting, fever, chills, as well as skin-related symptoms such as cellulitis (a painful, red rash on the skin) and blisters.
“Now, in a healthy person we can treat it pretty easily, but we have to have what’s called a high index of suspicion which means you have to think about it,” Keizer said. “And so, for doctors, if you see somebody who’s been in the water and they have a rash that’s spreading very quickly, almost to the point where they’re blistering, you have to think Vibrio vulnificus and you have to use the appropriate treatment for that.”
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Texas isn’t the only area where people are contracting the bacterial infection. In June, a 54-year-old Missouri man died after consuming raw oysters and contracting Vibrio vulnificus. He bought the oysters in Manchester, a city located in St. Louis.
A month later, a 71-year-old man suffering from “underlying medical conditions” died two days after eating raw oysters at a restaurant in Sarasota, Florida.
Then in August, a series of events occurred when three people – one in New York and two in Connecticut – lost their lives after exposure to Vibrio vulnificus. Two people in Connecticut got infections after swimming in Long Island Sound, while in New York, Vibrio vulnificus bacteria was found in the body of a recently deceased Suffolk County man.
According to the CDC, Vibrio vulnificus is responsible for approximately 80,000 illnesses per year in the United States. Among the many species of Vibrio, about ten are known to be harmful to humans.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education