E. coli on the rise in the US
According to a recent update from the US Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number of confirmed Escherichia coli (E. coli) cases in the US has increased.
It has added six from California, one from Florida, one from Georgia, one from Illinois, one from Massachusetts, 10 from Missouri, one from New Jersey, two from New York, two from North Dakota, one from Texas, one from Washington and one from Wisconsin. In addition, four more states have reported ill people: Florida, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Texas.
There have been 149 cases to date, including 17 with haemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) – a severe complication of E. coli infection – and one death. The most recent illness began on 25 April.
According to information collected to date, romaine lettuce from the Yuma growing region could be contaminated with E. coli and could make people sick. Advice to travellers is to avoid buying and eating romaine lettuce unless they can confirm it is not from the Yuma growing region.