SerpApi.Org
The U.S. Food and Drug and Administration said Wednesday it is investigating an additional cyclospora outbreak that the agency said has sickened at least 72 people.
It is the latest of four continuing cyclospora outbreaks being investigated by the FDA. The largest involves at least 1,644 cases, which have been linked to shredded iceberg lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms and served at Taco Bell in five states.
The companies have said that the shredded lettuce, sourced from central Mexico, has been removed from the U.S. market. Taylor Farms said last week that it voluntarily recalled iceberg lettuce grown and processed in Mexico, including products sold in grocery stores and restaurants across 27 states in the U.S.
The FDA hasn’t yet identified a source for any of the other cyclospora outbreaks.
The cyclospora parasite is typically spread through food or water contaminated by human fecal matter, according to the FDA. Cyclosporiasis, caused by the parasite, typically triggers diarrhea, vomiting and intense abdominal pain that can last for weeks. Symptoms can set in within two days or take as long as two or more weeks to manifest.
So far, 41 states have reported at least 4,173 confirmed cases of cyclosporiasis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At least 308 people have been hospitalized. Thousands of suspected food-borne illnesses linked to cyclospora are still being reviewed.
Cases of cyclosporiasis tend to rise during the spring and summer, but this year multiple states have had a marked increase in infections.
Health officials in Michigan, the state hit hardest by cyclospora cases, haven’t yet identified a source for the state’s infections. Authorities have pointed to lettuce and salad greens as a risk factor, but say there isn’t enough evidence to assign blame or rule out the possibility of numerous outbreaks.
Shares in several publicly traded restaurant companies, including Taco Bell parent Yum Brands, slid on Wednesday afternoon following the FDA announcement.
The FDA also said it was investigating at least 106 reported cases of salmonella and eight cases of listeria. The sources of those illnesses have yet to be identified.
Write to Amira McKee at [email protected]
