Health Law

Shigella Outbreak at Lombard, Illinois Subway

By Drew Falkenstein

The Chicago Tribune reported last night on a developing Shigella outbreak linked to a Lombard, Illinois Subway restaurant:

A Subway restaurant in Lombard has been closed by the DuPage County Health Department after several customers contracted gastrointestinal illnesses, officials said Thursday.

Health Department officials said in a statement that eight cases of shigellosis, an infectious disease caused by a bacterium called shigella, have been confirmed. Four people were hospitalized, according to the statement.

The Health Department said the restaurant at 1009 E. Roosevelt Road has been closed pending additional results of an investigation. Owners of the restaurant and representatives of Subway's corporate offices were cooperating with health officials, according to the statement.

Health officials said most people infected with the bacterium develop a gastrointestinal illness, including diarrhea, vomiting, fever and stomach cramps one to two days after being exposed to it.

Illness can pass from one infected person to the next and can also be acquired from eating contaminated food.

Full post as published by Food Poison Blog on March 05, 2010 (boomark / email).