Personal Injury Law

Two Deaths, Seven Illnesses Linked to Listeria in Texas

By Listeria Attorney

The San Antonio Metro Health Department is investigating a cluster of listeria infections that is being blamed for two deaths in Bexar County.  The infection is caused by eating food with the listeria bacteria. Over the past four months, five cases have been reported in Bexar County, one in Travis County, and another Hidalgo County.  Doctor Bryan Alsip told News 4 WOAI officials don't know the exact cause, but all the cases are linked.  It looks like all of these are genetically related," Dr. Alsip explained. "In other words, you can do a DNA fingerprint and, for some reason, they are connected."

My bet, Queso fresco (sometimes known as queso blanco). This is a creamy, soft, and mild unaged white cheese that originated in Mexico. It is made by pressing the whey from cottage cheese. It is very similar to cheeses called pot cheese and farmer cheese and has also been compared to Indian paneer. It is considered to be one of the easiest cheeses to make. It is often used as a topping for spicy Mexican dishes such as enchiladas and empanadas as well as filling for rellenos.

Queso Fresco associated Listeriosis in Texas, the facts? 2003 – 2007 (to date) Summary:

• 37 cases
• 12 non-pregnant adults, 25 mother/baby pairs
• 3 adult deaths (not pregnancy related), 1 infant death
• 4 miscarriages
• 11 premature deliveries
• 34 of the cases were Hispanic
• 29 reported eating queso fresco
* 22 cases in Hidalgo and Cameron Counties, 14 cases in Harris County

Full post as published by Listeria Blog on May 13, 2010 (boomark / email).