CDC E. coli Outbreak Surveillance Report for 2007
E. coli 0157:H7 and other foodborne agents cause an estimated 76 million illnesses annually in the United States.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has published its latest set of data on foodborne disease outbreaks submitted from all states and territories. The CDC Surveillance for Foodborne Diseases Outbreaks Report summarizes epidemiologic data for the 1,097 reported outbreaks occurring during 2007 (the most recent finalized data), which resulted in 21,244 cases of foodborne illness and 18 deaths.
Among the 497 foodborne outbreaks with a laboratory-confirmed single etiologic agent reported, 40 were shiga toxin-producing E. coli outbreaks, primarily E. coli O157:H7. Coupled with two more suspected E. coli outbreaks, the E. coli classification accounted for 6 percent of 2007 outbreaks.
The 2007 surveillance number was much higher than the mean established from 2002-2006. In that period, the mean number of shiga toxin-producing E. coli outbreaks was 28 per year, or 2 percent of the total outbreaks.
In terms of illnesses, the 2007 report also was higher. In 2007, CDC and state health departments tracked 603 confirmed and suspected shiga-toxin E. coli illnesses. That was up from the 2002-2006 mean number of 375 E. coli illnesses per year.
It is important to note when reviewing the foodborne disease surveillance report that the actual numbers of outbreaks and illnesses in the U.S. is much higher than those confirmed by public health scientists and laboratories.
Tags: E coli, E. coli Prevention
